Tea'sing All The Way Through
by Defenestrated-Nutter
Summary: The coffee shop that had become Law's second home just closed and with the nonstop madness that is college, he was forced to find another one to survive. He was used to ordering the strongest coffee and then sitting in a corner for hours straight and now, well he still sits in the corner but there's a plate and a bad pun written on a piece of paper near his computer. Au. Lawlu.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey there guys! So, I've been reading fanfics for nearly four years now and it felt like a good damn time to start giving something to the community as well so yeah, here it is I guess, my very first attempt to write a fanfic, hopefully, it's something reasonable.**

 **This story happens in an alternate universe so normal lives for everybody, no superpowers for anybody. It is also rated T but I will more likely change it to M in further chapters so read at your own risk.**

 **So I don't own anything related to One Piece aside from this fic and probably a few more in the future, we'll see. Anyway, English is not my first language so please warn me if there is some mistake so I can correct it right away :)**

 **And without further rambling, I hope you enjoy this first chapter ^^**

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The day Law discovered his new favorite coffee shop was a day just like the others. The sky was a bit cloudy and the sun was already out of sight. He was making his way towards his apartment building and decided to make a shortcut that ended up not being a shortcut at all.

He grabbed his phone to know where the hell he was before he could get even more lost. It's been three years since he moved and started his current college life but he still hasn't adapted totally to the town and still got lost more often than not. That was basically because he was only at home, at college, or inside the coffee shop that had welcomed him for three years and never actually decided to go for a walk, to go explore on his own.

Well, that was until that said coffee shop decided to close and made Law walk around the town to find a new spot with free WiFi and strong coffee. And goddammit, wasn't that just an impossible task?

Every coffee shop he entered had some sort of problem. The coffee was bad, the place was loud, the baristas were annoying, the place sucked, the internet was shit. Every single one had to have at least one of this flaws, if not more. It was probably Law's problem more than anything else, but it wasn't like it was his fault he had high standards when it came to coffee shops, he was used to be a regular customer at one of the best coffee shops in town after all.

So yeah, the day Law discovered his new favorite coffee shop was a day just like the others, and it was totally unintentional too. The moment he found out he was on Cocoyashi Street was also the moment his phone warned him about a nearby WiFi network named Bell-mere. He looked around, hoping for it to belong to a coffee shop and there it was, right in front of him. From the outside, it didn't look like a coffee shop at all. Law was sure if it wasn't for the WiFi he would have for certain walked right past it without even acknowledging the place. He decided to give the place a shot, it couldn't be that loud or crowded for sure since most of the people probably don't even acknowledge it's there. And he also needed a coffee, badly.

When he opens the door, a small bell jingles just above him causing everyone already sitting to look at him. And well, that's actually a good amount of people he's talking about, considering Law was expecting a small and deserted place, which happened to not be the case. He walks towards the counter where only a man was in front of him in line, being served by a young red-haired woman not older than Law himself. The woman smiles politely and gives the man his order before looking at Law with an expectant and curious expression, as if trying to remember if this was the first time Law comes in or not.

Law orders just an espresso, the strongest she can manage to make and asks for the wifi's password. She looks at him funny, then looks at the bag hanging from Law's left shoulder and snorts before turning around to make his order. When she turns around again, she hands him his coffee along with a small yellow piece of paper with the password written on it, and takes the money.

He nods and walks towards the corner where he gets himself installed. From his place, he has the perfect view of the street where he was just a few minutes ago, but he doubts he will be looking through it much. He grabs his computer from his bag and places it on top of the dark wooden table. He connects it to the plug he saw when he was still by the counter, just in the wall behind him. Law can sense the woman staring at him, but he forces himself to not look back at her with one of his glares. For the first time since he started looking for a new coffee shop, he had actually found one that he more or less likes. He doesn't want to start the relationship with the barista -that he's sure is more than just a barista, she has attitude- on the wrong foot right on the first day and before he even tastes the coffee.

As it turns out, the coffee is good, if not better than the one he was used to ordering a few weeks ago- so he calls that accident a win. And that was how Law discovered his new favorite coffee shop where he will spend most of his free time, cry of frustration and stress when he needs to work his ass off for college, spend most of his money in coffee, and probably lose a lot of years of life as doing so.

Law officially becomes a regular after two weeks of going every day and staying in the corner for a good couple of hours, glued to his computer and surrounded by a pile of papers and books. He finds out that the red-haired woman is named Nami, on a day where he was unusually chatty and she had no more customers to serve, and ever since then she does her best to chitchat with him whenever he approaches to order. That never lasts long though, as he grabs his coffee mug and basically sprints to his table in the first chance he has, luckily she never tried to initiate a conversation with him after he's settled.

Once or twice, she tried to sell one of the baked goods on display, stating they were made by her sister and the best in town. And damn, didn't they look good and mouthwatering, with bright colors and funny shapes. He tells her they look good whenever he sees a new variety on display, which is basically every day if he's being honest, but never actually buys one, much to Nami's dismay.

"My sister likes to experiment new things," Nami had said once when she caught Law staring at one good looking muffin. He didn't buy it though, and the change of Nami's polite smile to a sulk expression was worth it.

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On the Monday of the third week, it's raining heavily and Law gets soaked the second he walks out of his class. He didn't bring an umbrella in the morning, mostly because he doesn't exactly own a proper one that actually covers at least half of his body, and he was already too late and didn't have enough time to buy one on his way to college.

He opens the Bell-mere's door, the bell jingling above him, and goes directly to his table before ordering. He opens his bag and takes everything out, hoping his computer is still working properly and his books still dry. He's lucky, and couldn't thank the gods mentally more even if he tried to. He puts his bag in the back of the chair, adjacent to the one where he usually seats, to see if it dries a bit before he has to leave, and then makes his way to the counter. When he gets there, there is no Nami and judging expression badly hidden behind her polite smile anywhere. Instead, there is a kid on the other side of the counter, looking at him funny, and not in a Nami-kind-of-funny-stare that she used when he first entered through Bell-mere's door. No, his funny stare is way different, as if he's trying hard not to burst up laughing right in Law's face and be polite and welcoming at the same time. Law has never seen the guy there before, hell he has never seen anyone taking orders other than Nami before. He wonders if the guy's new, or if perhaps he's just covering Nami's shift.

Law tells him his order, his voice rough due to the bad weather and the cold and unexpected bath but he decides to ignore it. He puts the money on top of the counter and waits for the guy to finish his coffee. He wishes the baristas there wore name tags, like everyone else, so he could know to whom he's referring to mentally. Maybe he should tell that to Nami the next time he catches her working, since he already knows she and her sister own the place. He wonders why she decided to not use name tags, she seems smart so she probably has a reason for it.

Law stares at the guy's back as he does his order. He seems experienced with the machines so Law isn't too worried about his coffee tasting differently than the one Nami does. When he turns around, he hands Law his coffee with a big toothy grin and then grabs the money from the counter. Law turns around, coffee in his hand, and almost trips in the puddle he made while waiting.

"Would you like a towel or something to dry off?" The guy asks. His voice so high pitched that Law's surprised when that actually doesn't annoy him as much as it usually does.

"Yeah, if you might," Law mumbles and glares at the water under his feet. "Sorry about the lake." When he turns around, he sees the trail of muddy footprints that goes from the door to the table and then to where he stands. "And the trail"

"Don't worry about it. Go sit and I will bring you a towel in a minute." The guy says and disappears into the door that Law supposes leads to the kitchen area since he has seen Nami bringing the baked goods from there whenever a variety is out on display. Law does what it is told and goes sit, he's careful not to make any more mess than what he has done already. He's also thankful for the fact Nami isn't there to give him a lecture and make him clean everything. Law takes off his soaked hat and hangs it near his bag, as for his coat, he takes it off and puts it in the back of his chair. His hair is dripping wet, wetting his sweater that managed to remain dry due to the coat's protection.

The guy comes back then, stares at Law's messy and wet hair for a bit before handing him a small towel and turning around to start cleaning the floor with a mop. Law would've felt bad for him, if it wasn't for the smirk splashed across the kid's face as he cleans the mess, obviously amused by Law current figure. He talks to a few people while he cleans, the shop being more crowded than usual. The figure of some of them resembles Law's, small towel on top of their shoulders and all, even though Law is sure he looks a lot worse.

He wonders how many times the kid had to clean the floor.

When the guy returns to his place behind the counter, he catches Law staring at him and returns it with a lopsided smile. Law decides then that it's time to get his work done and redirects his stare from the guy to the computer's screen in front of him. He has an important essay that he still needs to finish, needs to revise, so that's what he does. He sits there in his peaceful corner, the rain hits the big window next to him, and the noise it makes is surprisingly relaxing and helps him get focused on the words on his computer's screen. He avoids looking in the guy's direction every time he hears the bell tingle and, within an hour, Law basically forgot about him, basically forgot that there were people around him. The heat of the place helps him get dry in no time, but he's sure his hat and bag in front of him are still wet. He can see how messy his hair is in the reflection on his computer screen every time it gets darker, and his clothes feel weird against his skin. Law feels exhausted and his eyes start to hurt by the time he's halfway through his essay. He looks at the now empty coffee mug on top of one of his anatomy books and considers ordering another one, but he has already abused caffeine during the previous night. He needed to stay awake so he abused caffeine and hasn't slept at all.

Law doesn't hear the guy coming in his direction, doesn't see or acknowledge him coming in his direction. In fact, Law only snaps out of his bubble when he hears him laughing with two other customers in the table beside him. By that time, a sweet smell fills his nostrils and when he looks to the place where is empty coffee mug was supposed to be, he's surprised to see that it has been replaced with a small blue plate and another mug. He glares at the brown waffle and the coffee mug -that he's sure contains more milk than coffee- for a good two minutes before looking at the counter direction, where the guy had already returned. He doesn't look in Law's direction, Law's sure as hell he's avoiding looking at him and is pretending to be busy cleaning the machines.

He glares at the food in front of him again, and just wonders the reason why it is there in the first place. Law hasn't ordered anything aside from his first coffee, now two hours ago, and he's sure the guy isn't that incompetent to have mistaken another customer's order and thought it was his. Then he sees a small yellow paper near his waffle plate, the same looking paper as the one Nami used to write the WiFi's password the first time Law entered through Bell-mere's door.

He stares before he grabs it to read. He honestly doesn't know what he's supposed to do or think with the information written on it.

 _ **I know youve just ordered a coffee but that was two hours ago and you look pretty waffle**_

He looks at the guy again, but he's still shamelessly ignoring Law. He decides then that he prefers Nami as his barista, at least she knows how to respect the boundaries he has made and knows when to stop pushing him to eat. He refuses to eat or drink, ignores the food completely and starts working again. But he can't resist to the delicious chocolate smell for more than ten minutes.

By the time he feels the guy looking at him, he has a grin cutting his face in half. The plate is now empty and the mug could be refilled one more time if Law wanted to, which he doesn't. He won't fall into temptation one more time, he won't be making a fool out of himself for the guy again. Law decides then that it's time to go, it's time for him to sleep and clean his mind. He packs everything again inside of his bag that it is more or less dry now. Law hasn't realized it had stopped raining until then, so it's safe for him to go and only come back when he sees a redheaded instead of a brunet on the other side of the counter.

Law brings the plate and the mug with him to the counter and then puts both things on top of it. The guy asks if Law liked it or not which he responds by asking how much it is for him to pay. It shouldn't make the guy's grin grow bigger.

"On the house," the guy explains, "you didn't order it after all"

Law stares at him for a bit, he suppresses the 'then why did you put it on my table' that wants to get out of his mouth because he's sure as hell would just receive an 'if you didn't want it why did you eat it?' in response. When the guy looks unfazed by Law's stare, he decides to look for the price tag and leaves enough money to pay the supposed Chocolate-Hazelnut Waffle with frangelico brown butter syrup and the coffee inside the tip jar before he leaves. He decides then that he likes Nami the best for sure, she would've never given him free food. Insist on him buying something other than his usual coffee sure, but free food never.

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A week passes before Law sees the guy again, but unfortunately, he sees him two days in a row. The weather is reasonable enough but Law couldn't be more stressed with all the college shit he still has to do due that week. He has a headache by the time he stands in the surprisingly long line to the counter. He has a backpack along with his usual computer bag on his shoulder and his back couldn't complain about the additional weight more. Law looks around, the place is crowded, has more people than what he has even seen since he started coming. Even his table was occupied by an old couple, otherwise, he would've already thrown all his shit to his corner. He couldn't be more pissed off but, by the time he leaves the line with his coffee on his hand, the table is already empty so he doesn't waste time and makes his way towards it before anyone else can.

And it happens again. Two hours later, his empty mug is replaced by a plate and another mug, only this time, Law catches the guy doing it.

"I didn't order anything," Law says looking away from the words on his computer.

"I know," the guy just simply responds and walks away before Law could say anything else, leaving the plate and coffee behind. The coffee is good but it isn't as strong in caffeine as he would like to, but he guesses it's for the best really, it helps him get a bit more awake but doesn't send him to the grave earlier. Today the plate contains a small square piece of cake instead of a waffle. It's brown and has a white cream and what seems to be diced walnuts on top. It looks good, Law tries to resist but in the end, he can't for longer than ten minutes. This time, Law doesn't look in the guy's direction as he gives a bite on the cake and feels the carrot flavor and what appears to be raisins inside of his mouth. The cream tastes like some sort of cheese and the whole combination is moist and good.

By the time he has to leave, he packs everything inside his bag or backpack, including the guy's note that just simply said, _**I know I'm not your friend or anything, but as good employee as I am, I carrot about my customers and you look dead**_. He takes the plate and mug with him again and puts the enough money to pay the coffee and the carrot cake inside the tip jar before he leaves.

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The next day when he enters through the Bell-mere's door again, he isn't surprised to see the guy at the counter again instead of Nami. He may be a bit annoyed because he knows he will get interrupted after two hours of work, but he's not at all surprised by the fact the guy is there anymore. Law hasn't brought his computer today, instead, his backpack is full of books and notes that he has already written when he was at home. He has no exact reason to be at Bell-mere's actually, he doesn't need internet for the work he needs to get done and his apartment is sure as hell quieter and more comfortable. And yet he's still there, sat in his own and private corner with his coffee mug already half drank, carefully positioned in between two piles of notes of medical genetics. Law can hear the guy going in and out of the kitchen every five minutes, sometimes he's quick and brings new baked goods to put on display while others he takes more time and comes back still chewing something. The coffee shop is quiet and all customers are already served so he basically just needs to come out from the kitchen when he hears the bell tingling and every once in awhile to make sure everything is alright.

Law finds it hard to concentrate on the papers in front of him and it's starting to get him frustrated, which must be reflected in his current expression because the old lady in front of him just keeps on looking at him with a sympathetic expression.

By the time he sees the guy making coffee when there's no one in line and then chooses something that Law can't see from the display to put on a blue small plate with already a note on, Law couldn't be more relieved. He sees the guy making his way around the counter and makes space among all the notes spread on top of the table for him to put the food on. Law leans against his chair and waits for him to come.

"Taking a break?" The guy asks when he's close enough for Law to hear him talk without it being too loud to disturb the other customers.

"Yeah, I guess," Law says and watches as the guy puts the plate in front of him and switches his empty mug for the full one he was holding. "So what am I eating against my will today?"

"Well, it's Caramelized Macadamia Camembert. It's brand new, just came out of the kitchen," he explains and grabs Law's empty mug, holding it in his hands. "And I don't remember ever make you eat against your will"

"Yes you did, you know it would be hard for me to resist," Law says and the guy snorts in response. He puts the plate closer to him and takes the note out so he can eat without dirtying it, he can read it when the guy is back on the other side of the counter. "So, am I the guinea pig?"

"More or less yeah. Nami's sister likes to hear critics to her food, not the bad ones though." The guy says and smiles sheepishly.

"And doesn't that make my day," Law mumbles and then proceeds to try the cheese in front of him. It's weird if he thinks about it, he's was just there burning his brain off with genetics and then the barista brings him a well-ornamented plate where the principal ingredient is cheese. But, well, it does taste amazing and the caramel on top gives the cheese a bittersweet flavor that actually works well. "You can tell her it's good"

"Yeah?" The guy basically beams. Law wants to beat the shit out of him for all the energy and excitement his body irradiates."Good, okay I will tell her that, hum-"

"Law," he says before he takes one more forkful to his mouth, and fights a smirk from taking over his mouth in the process.

"-liked, yeah that," the guy says and bites his bottom lip, hard. His eyes are all shiny and his cheeks are flushed, and if Law didn't know better, he would say that he wants to scream and punch the air with happiness. But Law does know better, even if that is exactly what it looks like from his perspective. The guy then takes a few tentative steps back, Law's empty coffee mug from earlier still being held firmly between his hands. "I'm gonna tell her and- I'm Luffy by the way," he adds awkwardly.

Law nods and watches as the guy-Luffy apparently, does his way back to behind the counter where he was supposed to be in first place and then proceeds to enter the kitchen, supposedly to tell said sister Law's opinion. Law finishes his food minutes later and starts working again, he decides to ignore the fact that Luffy only comes out of the kitchen when the sound of another customer entering Bell-meres can be heard, and by that time, he's even more flushed and his hair is in such a mess that Law wonders if he and Nami's sister were making out in the kitchen. He doesn't let his mind wonder for long though, because is in that same kitchen that is made the baked goods he's been eating lately. He prefers thinking that nothing happens there.

He leaves not long after and avoids looking at Luffy's face as he puts the money in the tip jar like always, already knowing that he wouldn't have let him pay. He does, however, stick the piece of paper where it can be read, _**Hey I camembert the last time I saw someone as focused on something as youre in your papers to be honest**_ , inside of one of his books when he's preparing to leave.

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The next time Law enters the Bell-mere's it's been three days and he's way more than pissed of with his life and the world in general. He hasn't slept the night before and has already told Shachi and Penguin to go fuck themselves more times than usual. He orders a bottle of water just because he needs to order something if he wants to be sat there and not because he needs or craves it specifically. Luffy looks at him with a weird expression because of course, he's there again, of fucking course.

"So, you don't want anything more?" Luffy asks confused after he hands him the bottle that Law is almost sure he won't even drink. Law doesn't even respond and just hands him the money. "Okayy, so we have new things today, anything you may want in two hours?" He insists with a tentative smile and there it is again, that desire to punch him in the fucking face again.

"No, I don't want anything more than this." Law grunts and shakes the bottle in front of Luffy's face just to make the guy understand better. Law knows he's being a douche but he couldn't care less. "And I don't even know, I mean, why do you insist on put food in front of me again?" He snaps before he goes to his corner, hopefully irradiating enough bad vibes to everyone stay the hell away from him.

Luffy doesn't say anything more, but Law can feel him staring and that only pisses him off even more. He contemplates the idea of going somewhere else, another coffee shop where the coffee may not be that good but where the ambiance and internet are good enough. Coffee is not his priority today, not when he already drank way more than what he should've for the day, hell for the whole goddamn week.

He knows that his bad mood is a combination of the lack of sleep, stress and the coffee addiction he knows he already has, but there's nothing much he can do right now, other than try to resist the urge of ordering a coffee and be stuck with a bad headache for the rest of the day. He opens his computer and starts doing his researches and taking notes that he can order later when he gets home. His bad mood gets better as the times passes by productively and he even drinks a bit of the water he brought just for the sake of it. He feels a bit bad then, when his mind reminds him more often than not of how much of a douche he was to Luffy when all he was doing was his job.

Law decides he will apologize more or less to him when he has to leave.

Only, he doesn't. Because Luffy is the one that comes to him, even though Law shook the bottle of water in front of him when after stating he did not want anything else than water.

Law doesn't see him coming, in fact, he only notices Luffy when the guy is right there moving away some books so he can put a plate and a mug on top of the table. Law stares at him as he does so, and stares at him some more when he walks away without saying anything.

This time there's no coffee inside of the mug, in fact, there is what Law assumes is tea, which he's actually thankful for. As for the plate, there's nothing more than a good looking crepe with an orange peel for decoration. Law wants to smile then, because Luffy seemed to have ignored the shit he said, but he also wants to scream and punch the wall also because Luffy seemed to have ignored the shit he said.

Law turns his computer into suspension and puts it aside. He grabs the small yellow paper before anything else and reads it, the want to smile then taking over his want to scream and punch.

 ** _You didnt let me answer your question before so, yeah I guess the reason Im doing this is cause Im a crepe. And Im also annoying and insufferable most of the time, but can we get oolong?_**

Law eats the crepe and drinks the tea, he looks in Luffy's direction more times than not but the guy never looks back in his direction, too busy taking orders of a big group of tourists that decided to enter. Law watches as he seems to have some issues understanding their orders, but a huge grin never leaves his mouth and the group formed by a majority of old ladies seem to be delighted by the joy and energy he constantly irradiates. It's a cute image to see while sipping a cup of tea actually.

When the whole group is served and sat, occupying the opposite corner where Law seats himself, Luffy has the break he seems to be needing. He grins in the group's direction before he looks to Law, who has only been looking at him the whole time, even after he finished his crepe and tea. Which is ridiculous really, he has work he needs to get done.

Luffy's grin fades a bit when he catches Law staring at him, only to come again in full force when Law waves at him awkwardly.

Law hopes that counts as some sort of an apology.

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 **Feel free to PM me ^^**

 _ **Remember to smile every day, at everyone, with and without reason. A smile is the best thing you can put on your face.**_


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey there again**

 **So first of all, I want to apologize for this delay, it wasn't in my plans. But since this is only the second chapter you still can catch up easily :) I'm currently having some internet issues has my home is apparently too far away from civilization for me to be able to have WiFi. I'm working on that. I also want to apologize for my delay in responding to all the comments and PMs that I received during this time, it was also unintentional.**

 **And ATTENTION, don't get fooled by the sweet feeling this two chapters may give. It may be triggering in the future chapters for some people but don't worry, I will warn you properly when those chapters are up as I will properly change the rating of the fic by that time too :)**

 **Well, that's all from me for now, hope you enjoy this chapter.**

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It takes Law a whole week to see Luffy again behind the counter with his uniform and a way too big smile on his face to be considered normal again. Law knows quite a few people who would think the guy is just being overly polite, not that the opinion of those people really matter to him. After all, Law is almost sure that fucking smile -or grin, or smirk, or whatever the hell the guy's mouth decides to twitch into- isn't faked. Well that or the guy should be fucking working in Hollywood and winning Oscars instead of working in a place where it doesn't matter how friendly or professional at doing said job one is, there will just be those customers coming in every once in awhile that bitch about everything, just because they're frustrated and stressed about something and want to release anger on someone they don't know. Figures.

Not that Law is saying that the guy is a professional at what he does, because he isn't. Sure, he can handle those weird looking coffee machines that look like fucking train engines in speed light and talks to everybody as if talking to a close friend which makes the ambiance of the Bell-mere's a lot nicer; but he's also way too clumsy, even though he keeps insisting on carrying three or more plates full of pastries that come from the kitchen on top of his hands, talks way to much, even though he probably just met the person he's talking to in that exact same moment and Law always sees him chewing whenever he leaves the kitchen, which is every five minutes if there isn't a line that needs to be attended. Not only every five minutes, Law has seen him picking up pastries every now and then from the display when he thinks no one is watching and he always bends to pretend to pick up something from the floor so he can eat without being seen. The guy may be a good actor, but he sure as hell isn't discreet.

Plus, he still does that weird thing where he just puts food in front of Law without saying anything and practically forces him to eat with just a pointed look between Law and the food, like some old grandma feeding her skinny little grandchildren. And it happens every time the guy is behind the counter, which has been more often than not, aside from the past week where Law actually had a break and decided to save some money and sleep instead of drugging his sleep deprived brain with caffeine. Anyway, Law's sure there must be some kind of rule that states that anyone that works in a place that serves food is prohibited to force people into eating their shit. There must be, so no, not professional at all.

And speaking of breaks, Law's not entirely sure why he's sitting in his corner spot at Bell-mere's right now. He guesses it may have been instinctual since he's so used to coming in almost every day, but he suspects the headache that has accumulated in his brain due the lack of caffeine during the week (because he actually slept more than five hours straight per night and didn't need help to stay awake) is the most probable cause of that involuntary act instead of his regularity as a costumer.

He hasn't brought his computer though, and he's not exactly in the mood for grabbing one of the books that are inside of his backpack and start writing notes for the future college shit he doesn't want to acknowledge is coming, so he decides to use his phone and the eighty-five percent battery it has to do some random searches on the internet. It's not like he has other things to do. His options are really just to screw around on his phone or stare at Luffy from his corner as the guy fights to remain calm while one very rude old lady talks nonstop about how this place used to be a good store where she usually bought her favorite fruit before two crazy women (also known as Nami and her sister) decided to turn it into the coffee shop it is today. It's kind of hilarious to see actually, considering the old lady barely stands taller than the counter and Luffy has to basically lay on top of if as he explains to her that the crazy women were actually the daughters of said store's owner so they had full permission to do whatever the hell they wanted to do with the place. The old lady does not look impressed by his explanation and leaves muttering about how kids these days had too much audacity towards elderly people.

Law doesn't know why, but he feels a bit, well, uncomfortable, when Luffy catches him staring as the lady leaves and just shrugs as if responding -to a question that Law didn't ask- that he also has no idea of what the fuck just happened. Law feels stupid for it, he was supposed to be searching randomly, not staring. But it wasn't like everyone else inside the coffee shop weren't staring either. So he proceeds to focus his attention to the phone he's holding between his hands and ignores everyone around him.

Two hours later, Law isn't sure when exactly he had finished drinking his coffee or why he ended up reading some serious philosophical shit about the ethics of organ transplantation and opening a total of sixteen tabs about the subject. But hey, Law does feel a bit more open minded when it comes to ethics and utilitarianism so he calls it a win. So, for coming back to reality for whatever reason, Law catches Luffy putting the plate and another coffee mug in front of him without being caught off guard. The guy heads back to his place behind the counter with Law's empty coffee mug before Law can try to persuade him to stop bringing him food he hasn't ordered and taken the plate back with him, although he knows it would've been useless since the guy would most likely ignore him for the fiftieth time. But at least Law could say he tried. And anyway, isn't the client always right? Yep, not professional at all.

He grabs the mug and sips, the coffee is hot and, if the inside of his mouth and his throat weren't used to hot as lava kind of coffee by now, he would've probably burned his tongue or something. He glares at the two small cake squares with yellow cream and orange sections on top for some good five minutes, hoping the plate would disappear if he tried hard enough. Then he sighs heavily when nothing happens and brings the plate closer. He swears he's fatter, he feels heavier every time he stands from whatever surface he was sitting on, and all the goddamn blame is on Luffy. Law will blame him too if he becomes diabetic.

Law may be succumbing to insanity or maybe is the sugar inside of his system, but he has started doing this thing where he eats whatever Luffy puts on the plate for him before he reads the yellow paper because he actually enjoys trying to figure out what word related to the food of the day must be written on it. He damn knows he's succumbing to insanity, and he sure as hell will blame Luffy yet again if he ends up in an asylum. Anyway, if he ignores how insane and stupid the little game he has come up with mentally and that no one else's hearing about is, it can tun out to be two things, or he guesses the world in a blink of an eye and doesn't even try and high fives himself mentally after he reads the paper and finds he's right; or it ends up being incredibly, ridiculously hard to guess and has to give up and read the paper to know what the hell was the ingredient he didn't guess.

This time though, the word seems obvious since the cakes squares practically scream 'orange' from afar. Sure, there could be some hidden ingredient that Law's tasting capacity didn't catch (Like that one time when the fucking word was thyme, like how the hell should he had guessed that if the thing was mixed with the fucking cake batter, it's not like he's a fucking master chief) but he doubts it. So when he grabs the yellow paper and sees that he has won his own game that he's playing alone, he snickers.

 _ **Orange your eyes like super tired? I mean dont get me wrong but or you stare at your computer or at your phone and you look tired**_

But he still stares at it for way more than what is probably necessary, only this time he isn't trying to make the paper disappear. He's just, well confused. He has slept more during the week than what he probably has during two years. He's rested, even his fucking eyes are puffed due to the abnormal amount of time he has slept over the last few days. Sure, he still doesn't have proper sleeping levels, he would need to fucking hibernate if he wanted to have proper sleeping levels, but still.

If Luffy can't see how well rested Law is, well then his eyes are the ones that are tired.

He hears the bell jingling and, as he looks up to see if he knows the face of the person (he had become familiar with the faces of other regulars like him okay, judge him), he's surprised to see the small old lady back again. And, by Luffy's expression, once he comes out of the kitchen to take the new costumer's order, he's surprised too. Law wonders why the woman is back. If she came back just to argue then or she's annoyingly persistent, or she suffers from Alzheimer.

Law looks at Luffy then, who is already in his position behind the register with a big toothy grin splashed across his face, as if in whatever epic battle that happened between them two he ended up winning victoriously. The old lady starts making her way towards him. She takes her time, but it's not like there's anyone other than her that's going to order. He hears her demanding _'surprise me young man',_ which somehow manages to make Luffy's grin grow brighter before she goes and sits at a nearby empty table right next to the counter where she can observe Luffy, her judging expression not even slightly hidden under all her wrinkles. That attitude gets a little under Law's nerves, but Luffy seems unaffected by it as he proceeds to carefully study the pastries on display before he grabs a purple colored cream cake and cuts a slice.

Moments later, the old lady has said plate and a teacup in front of her. She glares at it for a couple of minutes until she finally moves closer, as if studying a rare object and then, well, she just digs in and looks surprised that the cake does taste as good as it looks, if not better. Law wonders if that was his expression when, a couple of weeks back, Luffy first put food on top of his table and confused the hell of out him. And the cup of tea, Law knows that cup, has received one himself not long ago. What was the name of the tea again? Oolong or something.

Law doesn't really think much about how he just puts the name of the tea in the damn google search bar of his phone because hell it has to have some meaning.

He's only mildly annoyed to find out it helps with the stress management.

She doesn't receive a yellow paper though, which Law is somehow pleased about.

.

.

.

Two days later, it's a good and sunny day outside. He passes by two tourist buses parked in the park right beside Cocoyashi street and when he enters through Bell-merè's door, he's surprised to see the ridiculous amount of people that have actually managed to fit inside the place. The line to the register is the longest Law has ever seen since he chose the coffee shop as his go-to so far. Law literally enters and almost hits the last person with the door. Ridiculous.

To make things worse, his little corner is occupied by a green haired punk and a woman whose face sure as hell seems familiar, Law just doesn't know from where. He decides to stay on the line then, waiting for them to leave so he can sprint and dump all his shit on top of his table as a clear signal of ' _already occupied_ ' for anyone that gets the idea of sit there. That action will force him to leave the line and will probably throw him to the end of it again, but at least he knows he will have a place to sit after he receives his order which the other people waiting can't say the same.

Only, the line is moving forward pretty quickly and they don't seem to be heading out anytime soon, looking like they will probably stay there for a good amount of time even, much to Law's displeasure. He starts glaring at them then, hoping that if he puts enough power in his glare they will turn their attention towards him and maybe get scared and just leave his damn spot. But neither of them even glance in his direction, no matter how hard he glares, how hard he frowns or how hard he hits with his foot on the floor. They just seem too fucking focused on drooling and gossiping about whoever is behind the counter, which can only be Nami or Luffy.

He contemplates the idea of just go there and tell them to fuck off, but that would be rude and Law isn't a rude person, most of the time at least. And if Nami is the one behind the counter, he doubts she would ever let him in again if he ever does force someone to move from his corner spot and go sit somewhere else. He wonders how much it would cost him to make a deal with Nami to reserve that spot as his and his only, at least for the two hours that he usually spends there. And then he remembers that he's in college and can barely keep afloat with all his life savings and that Nami would probably say yes and then ask for a small fortune.

When the absurdly tall guy that stands in front of him decides to give up and go somewhere else (a wise action those two little shits should follow), Law can see who's behind the counter without making a fool out of himself trying to look sideways. He's surprised to see both Luffy and Nami working together, mostly because it's the first time it happens as far as Law is concerned, but that is actually the only explanation to why the line is moving so fast so he shouldn't be.

In that moment, as Law is barely in the middle of the line, he can almost imagine what had happened. One of them behind the counter, all alone and without any further customers to attend, then and out of a blue, a big wave of people talking in a very angry sounding language just comes out of nowhere and splits between the three coffee shops of the street. He can imagine Nami sending text after text to Luffy demanding help as the first customer does the way to the counter, can imagine her rising from her fancy high chair to start doing the orders as fast as it was humanely possible to not lose customers to the competition. And he can also imagine Luffy's case, him coming out from the kitchen with his mouth full as the sound of the door's bell fills the place, only to go back inside and tell Nojiko to call Nami for help. He would harshly swallow whatever was inside of his mouth until he could grin without having cake decorations on his teeth and then proceed to try to figure out the customers' orders.

Law is pulled out of his imagination when the chick behind him, probably not older than Luffy, shoves him with her elbow. He turns around and glares at her, receiving a few rounds of _'Oh my god I'm so sorry I didn't mean to_!'. He rolls his eyes and proceeds to ignore her. He looks back at the counter where Nami is taking orders with her polite smile and her perfectly applied makeup (not that he knows shit about makeup, he just knows that if the girls don't look like pandas or pumpkins then they must have done it right). She opens the cash register and takes care of the money like she was born for it, then he remembers that this is Nami he's talking about, she was obviously born for it. She then repeats the orders in her usual demanding tone to a way too busy Luffy so that he can make them in his usual speed light.

In contrast to Nami's perfect figure though is Luffy, with his air that looks like a dark birds' nest, coffee stains and what Law hopes is chocolate covering most of the front part of his uniform. When he has his back turned, Law can see how tense his shoulders are; and when he's picking something from the almost empty display, Law can see his small frown and his colored cheeks like he's trying hard to focus and not forget anything from the orders Nami just keeps on demanding. A blue haired woman then emerges from the kitchen with her arms full of diabetic nightmares and fills the display once more before returning to the kitchen, Law guesses she must be Nami's sister.

Said sister that prepares the pastries Law has been forced to eat and that makes out or does what God knows what with Luffy every five minutes every time the coffee shop is mostly empty.

Law still likes to imagine that nothing other than baking happen in that kitchen.

He then looks at his spot again and dammit, those fuckers are still there giggling not so discretely and gossiping with one another. He realizes then that they're most likely talking about Luffy, considering that their eyes follow every move of the guy and he wonders if that attention is what is making Luffy uncomfortable and flushed.

In the end, Law's time to order arrives sooner than expected and his spot is still occupied. Nami doesn't try to coerce him into buying a pastry when he orders the strongest coffee to go because they both know it's a lost cause and hello, there are impatient customers behind Law that need to be attended. Nami gives him a sympathetic smile as she tells him to step aside and wait for his order because she knows his spot is occupied and still doesn't do anything about said fact. Aren't regular customers the VIP's of coffee shops? Shouldn't they be treated with love, affection, and empty seats? Apparently not. Maybe Law should offer Nami a book with the essential things a coffee shop should follow to become successful. Yeah okay, the place sure does look successful, especially today, but that's not the point.

When Luffy turns around to give Law his order, his face changes into an expression of recognition of Law's pissed off face, because he sure as hell is pissed off. Then he looks between Law and his coffee _to go_ and he pouts slightly, his face turning into a confused one. And Law, well, he responds with a head movement towards his occupied spot like the pissed off neanderthal he is. Luffy follows his not so vague head movement (because there could be only one thing he would point at) and immediately looks away, giving Law his order with his cheeks way redder than before. Yep, those guys are totally the reason why Luffy is so tense, those fuckers. If Law was the one sat there, he wouldn't make Luffy uncomfortable, why can't Nami see that and tell them to fuck off by herself?

Luffy moves to the next order because he has work he needs to do and Law is practically shoved aside by the guy that was apparently behind him in line, the other girl must've given up too. Law leaves then and, for the first time since Luffy started taking his order, he exits the Bell-mere's door with an empty stomach, craving for sugar and without a yellow paper between the sheets of one of his books.

He walks down the Cocoyashi street and then randomly chooses between the two coffee shops at the end of it because he also has works that he needs to get done. He ends up entering a weird looking one and goes put all is shit in a nearby table before he heads towards the counter to order something to eat. The place has a few tourists too, but nothing compared to Bell-mere's and Law is immediately attended without having to wait in any line. He receives an unimpressed facial expression from the barista that Law's sure is due the fact that there is a coffee cup from the competition among all his things on top of the table. Law glares at him for a bit before ordering a blue cupcake from the display and then asks for the WiFi password. Turns out the unimpressed expression from the barista can actually turn into an even more unimpressed expression. It doesn't suit his face one slight bit.

He sits and works for two hours, as usual, drinks his coffee and eats half of the cupcake because it wasn't anything near Bell-mere's quality ones and he tells himself he does not feel guilty for ordering a pastry in another coffee shop.

Only when he's about to leave, he realizes how rudely he demanded the cupcake he didn't even completely eat in the end, and that he must've been that customer that releases all the frustration, anger and stress in the poor barrister from the competition that -even though he wasn't the nicest person either- had nothing to do with Law's problems.

.

.

.

The next day, Law is back and both Luffy and Nami are behind the counter again, even though there is no line forming the wall of China today. He does not think twice before he dumps all his shit on top of _his_ table located on _his_ spot, he will not risk it this time. When he makes his way to the register, Nami is looking at him funny and Luffy looks like he trying hard to suppress a grin, yep not discreet at all. He glares at them both, only because they're traitors that, for some reason, he keeps on choosing over all the other baristas.

"Hello there my dear happy customer, what can I sell you today?" Nami asks at her place by the register.

"You know what I want," Law responds simply, making her sigh dramatically and roll her eyes hard. Beside her, Luffy snickers but Law doubts Nami has heard, otherwise she would most likely glare at him in return.

"Oh come on! Don't you want anything with your coffee? We have new things today, delicious things may I add." Nami says and points to the display Law refuses to look at. He won't fall for that, that's salesman basic shit, making you look at good looking things so your desire to buy and consume increases to the point of their satisfaction. Law crosses his arms in front of his chest and refuses to break eye contact, one has to be persistent and firm to deal with this kind of people, otherwise, they will just keep on trying to sell you everything they have. When Nami sees Law isn't going to look at the display, at least not in her presence, she sighs again, this time a defeated kind of sigh. "Do you know how bad it is for you to drink this strong coffee without any food along with?"

"Don't care," Law responds before turning his attention to Luffy that seems pleased to know he's the only one that can force him to eat. "Just make me the damn coffee."

"Still don't know what's with your attitude..." Nami mutters and her polite smile and friendly expression are completely gone. That, ladies and gentleman, is how Law knows he just won the food battle. And also that, dear future customers of Bell-mere's, is how you're going to be treated if you end up going there a bunch of times and show Nami you will still come no matter how badly she treats you.

"Still don't know why you keep on insisting on forcing me to buy cupcakes," he says in the same bitter tone. Luffy hands him his coffee and he takes it. Law starts then doing his way to his table, feeling pleased with the thought that he just won two battles in a row with Nami.

"Still don't know why you insist on using that hat either," Nami says loudly enough for everyone inside the Bell-mere's to look at him and judge both him and his hat. Such a party pooper.

Law doesn't respond, he knows it must look like he doesn't have anything to say back but that's not the case at all, he just doesn't want to encourage such childish behavior. Instead, he turns his computer on and starts doing the work he didn't finish the day before because the internet of the other coffee shop was ridiculously shitty. He types fast and writes notes and tries to stay focus on the words on his computer screen and not on the conversation that is being held between Luffy and Nami not far away from him, because he is not a nosy person. He just happens to hear most of the conversation anyway, but he tried not to and it's not like he carries ear plugs all the time.

He ends up learning that Nami and Luffy are childhood friends and that Nami's sister is named Nojiko when she emerged from the kitchen and participated in the conversation for some five minutes. Learned that a guy named Zoro got drunk the other night and that it apparently happens quite often, that one Sanji guy keeps flirting with Nami even though she isn't and never will be into him, and that Luffy apparently has a dog named Chopper that lives with him and his brother Ace, who just destroyed their new microwave again.

Come to think of it, Law does pay attention to the conversation. But that's their fault, not his. They talk way too loudly for anyone to consider the conversation private.

Law doesn't know how the information he unintentionally heard may be important, or how he can judge Luffy and Nami as people based on their friends behavior, so he decides it doesn't matter and proceeds to push it all the way to the back of his brain, to a corner where there isn't anything that may be important to Law's exams.

When Law finishes his work and closes his computer, he intends on leaving right away so he can at least try to fix the mess he lives in. But then he sees his empty and alone coffee mug and he knows he's craving for something sweet (great, now he's addicted to sugar too. Thanks, Luffy), so he decides that maybe he'll try one of those delicious new things Nami talked about, but there is absolutely no way in hell he is going to be the one ordering it. It would be like declaring defeat after facing Nami as well as he did. Nope, no way. He looks in Luffy's direction and tries to subtly catch his attention without catching Nami's. He should've brought a pastry and another mug by now, two hours had already passed and Law is still there with nothing aside from his empty coffee mug in front of him.

Not professional.

Law stares and stares even harder but the power of his eyes seem to be fading away since every time he stares or glares at someone they just seem unaffected by it or won't even notice. He wonders if that's is due to the ridiculous amount of sugar in his system. He blames Luffy.

Nami is sat near the register -in the high chair that Luffy certainly does not have available when he's alone behind the counter- and Luffy is in front of her talking excitedly and with a lot of hand movements. Law can only see his face beside Nami's head but if Law can see his eyes then Luffy can see his too. He brings one arm up and starts waving slowly, trying to catch only Luffy's attention and not the whole place's. And that actually does the trick as Luffy's eyes connect with his, he doesn't stop talking though, probably because of Nami.

He then wonders if Nami knows what her only employee is been doing lately. She probably doesn't because hello, money is involved and she sure as hell would throw a tantrum if she knew Luffy is giving him free food (well, not free since Law always puts money inside the tip jar, but it's not like that money goes to the register so that means a loss). Law makes a hand gesture that he hopes Luffy will get as _'where is my food'_ and the guy suddenly grins widely and that catches Nami's attention, who turns around like the girl from Exorcist and glares at him for no good reason. What a way to be subtle.

Law, like the genius he is, decides to disguise and pretend to be writing something on his computer. Only, his computer is in front of him closed and he ends up making a fool out of himself. When Law looks towards the counter again, Luffy is laughing hard and Nami is looking at him with a blank expression and wide opened eyes that mess with Law system more than what any facial expression as ever done, and he has seen some weird facial expressions during his short life.

"What the hell does he want?" Nami asks-no, demands quite loudly like Law can't hear her perfectly fine. Law sees Luffy stop laughing and looking at her, he bites his lip like he's unsure of something and then decides to put the turbo and just go. The fact that Law saw those changes of thought just by looking at his expression is just disturbing.

Luffy's goes inside the kitchen and comes back with a blue plate -his blue fucking plate- and grabs something yellow colored from the display. He starts making his coffee and then writes the usual pun because, even though Nami must be drilling holes on his head with just her eyes, somethings never change. He then makes his usual way towards Law and Nami's head turns to follow him. She looks nothing more than purely confused and a bit shocked and maybe slightly offended.

"You must be suicidal to still force me to eat with the witch watching," Law mutters as soon as Luffy is close enough. He receives a grin and he kind of almost laughs in return but not because of Luffy, no, it's because of the red-haired woman that he can see in the background behind Luffy, looking at both of them like they're aliens and just crashed her coffee shop with their spacial ship.

"Well, these macaroons sure are to die for," Luffy responds and puts the plate on top of his closed computer gently, right in front of him. He switches the empty for a full coffee mug again and stands there awkwardly, pretending not to feel Nami's stare that is starting to seem more like a glare by now. Law wonders if she as put two and two together, she's not dumb after all. "Besides, you did order this time."

"I don't remember saying a word." Law teases because why not, if the guy is going to get murdered once he goes back behind the counter, Law may as well have some fun with his still living body. Okay, that sounded weird.

"But you did hand gestures, same thing for me," Luffy says and winks dramatically before his face changes and he comes closer, his left hand cupping his mouth like he's about to tell a secret. "And since you ordered it, you'll have to pay for it this time. You know, not in the tip jar but at the register. Yeah?"

"And why should I do that again?" Law asks and shoves all his books inside of his backpack so he can have some clean space.

"Because I'm a wonderful person and, contrary to what popular gossip says, I'm not suicidal and I do like living."

Yes, Law bets he does. "I'll think about it."

Luffy nods in response and gives him one final smile before he starts going back towards an already standing on her feet, arms crossed firmly under her breasts Nami. Yeah, she put two and two together. Luffy continues to walk to the counter, but his last steps are cautious and he sure as hell looks tense again. Nami grabs his arm and practically drags him inside the kitchen. Law doesn't know how the mug Luffy was holding didn't fall.

He waits for them to come out again but after three minutes of weird noises and hissed voices that Law can't understand coming from the kitchen, he gets tired and focuses on his macaroons. He's sure Luffy will be alright, maybe a bit traumatized but he will survive. Probably.

The macaroons look funny but delicious. They're a vibrant shade of yellow and have small bits of popcorn on top. When he bites one, the flavor of popcorn and butter fills his mouth and it's surprisingly good considering the whole idea behind it. He guesses the word may be popcorn, or corn. Only, it isn't but yeah, close enough.

 _ **Dont listen to Namis fashion advice, I think your hat is a-maize-ing**_

As if Law would ever follow or be affected by them really.

In the end, and after ten or so minutes, he gets tired of waiting and pays to a shocked looking Nojiko that looks at him and waits for him to order, only he's there to pay. She then looks at him funny when he just gives her the enough amount of money to pay the Buttered Popcorn Macaroons and the coffee Luffy had brought him. That look always gets under his nerve because he can sense she knows something he doesn't and it is the same fucking look Shachi and Nami have constantly splashed across their faces. But he just tells her that her food is delicious before he leaves. She has no fault really, she was forced to come out of the kitchen because, hello again, someone has to take care of the customers. Nami and Luffy are certainly not doing their job properly.

It's getting harder and harder to pretend that nothing happens inside of that kitchen to be honest.

* * *

 **Feel free to leave a PM^^**

 _ **Remember that when you do good things to others you attract good things back to you. Don't release all of your bad energy on people who have no fault or that you don't know just because it may be easier.**_


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey, guys!**

 **So this chapter was supposed to be up Saturday but the internet issue is still mocking me. My mother says next year she will sign a contract with a different company, and how awesome is that? Next year, how great, Jesus could it take any longer? Could we leave any further from the city? Aff.**

 **And tests will officially start on Friday, but I've made a commitment to myself, one update every two weeks. I know it's not much but I can't do much else. And I will always update sooner if I can.**

 **Anyway, I think that's all for me for now, I guess. Come back in two weeks to know more about my internet problem.**

 **I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

* * *

As the finals come closer and closer, the tenser, sleepier and in a worse bad mood Law is. But it's not like it's his fault really. No, the fault is on the lack of sleep, the bad fast food he's been eating lately because well, it saves him time if he just buys it. And let's not forget that his brain is constantly working which is overly exhausting, to say the least. But hey, as Shachi says, let's look at the bright side of it all, in two weeks we're officially on spring break!

And the 'we' is obviously the few ones that can manage to survive and keep sane. Law's sure neither him or Shachi belong to that group of survivors anymore. They will die as juniors.

So yeah, he's tense and tired and he sure misses that Holly and made by God week. He spends most of his time inside of Bell-mere's getting fatter and more addicted to caffeine every day that passes. It was supposed to be spring already outside, or at least the start of spring time, with flowers and sunlight. But it sure as hell looks more like winter than anything else, with all kinds of humidity and storms that come and go in one day.

His apartment is a mess where he can barely even see the floor with the amount of papers and books that are spread. He has to do the laundry as soon as he can manage, otherwise, he will have to start using dirty clothes. He has to take the trash outside and he has to change the bed sheets and- and he basically needs his brain to stop worrying about daily shit so he can fall asleep.

The clock on top of his bedside table tells him it's half past five in the afternoon. If it was another day, he would be at Bell-mere's filling his stomach with a combination of caffeine and sugar, burning his eyes with his computer screen, and frying his brain with way too much information in one go. But he was too damn tired and couldn't bring himself to make the effort to go and sit for two hours in the same seat until his ass was squared shaped or numb. He had decided to go to bed and sleep until he had to go for another round of endless classes in the morning instead.

But, obviously, his brain had decided to make a not so quick checklist of all the things he has to do. Also, Shachi is being an annoying ass and started sending him non-stopping texts that he hasn't read and calling every two minutes because the guy isn't smart enough to realize Law is ignoring him. Law had thrown away his phone when putting it on silent didn't resolve the problem and Shachi just kept on insisting. Apparently, he owns an earthquake simulator, who would've thought.

It wasn't vibrated since then, but that's probably because it broke when it hit the floor and not because Shachi put two and two together and decided to annoy another person.

Yeah, he has a hard time falling asleep lately and by the time he actually does fall asleep, it only lasts some good twenty minutes when hard knocks on his front door disturb and wake him up. He decides to ignore the door the same way he did with his phone because he's sure the person on the other side is no other than fucking Shachi. But after five minutes he's fully awake and in an even worse mood that what he was before he went to sleep. Worst than not let him sleep, is wake him up before he's at least half rested.

"It better fucking be the fucking end of the world," Law mutters as he makes his way towards his front door. He takes heavy and loud steps as he does so and he really does hope the people that live below him were taking a nap too, and that he just woke them up. Those fuckers make way too much noise at night and they're lucky Law never saw them in person, otherwise, they would've been murdered by now.

He opens the door without even checking (that's how sure he is that it's Shachi) and glares harder than what he has ever done in his life, probably.

"Yo Law!" Shachi beams and grins on the other side and oh, doesn't Law want to punch the hell out of him right now.

"What the fuck do you want?" Law demands, but he sounds too sleepy even to his own ears so it doesn't have the desired effect, which is make Shachi go the fuck away and leave him alone.

"Oh, nothing much," he says as he brushes Law aside so he can enter his apartment. He does his way to the couch and lies on it like he fucking owns the place. His shoes still on his feet and all. Law does not remember ever telling him to 'feel at home', not to him or to anyone for that matter. His apartment is not theirs. Law closes the door and follows him, but he just stands with his hands grabbing the back of the couch and glaring at him.

"Just wanted to make sure you're alright, since you never texted or called me back, which, by the way, is harsh man," Shachi had put his hand on his chest dramatically before he turns on the TV with the controller that Law had lost almost two weeks ago. How and where the guy had found it, Law doesn't know.

Law sighs loud and heavily, on purpose so Shachi can hear just how annoyed he is right now. Shachi ignores it the same way he's ignoring the glares. Not that it would make much difference if he didn't really, but still. Law doesn't get why Shachi always ignores the fact that Law's ignoring him, like right now. The guy has a hard time realizing when he's unwanted.

"I'm fine so you can get the fuck out of my apartment now."

"Yeah you're fine, but your mood sure isn't." Shachi rolls his eyes. Law wonders exactly how much time it would take for someone to notice the guy is gone if he just killed him right here, right now with his bare hands and then proceeded to get rid of the body with acid.

"Look Shachi, I don't know what the fuck you want but I'm exhausted and I was sleeping so it would be awesome if you could leave me the fuck alone."

"Oh, did I wake you up?" Shachi says and looks up at him.

Law is having a hard time keeping a straight face. "What do you think?"

"Sorry about that." He responds, but he doesn't look sorry at all which only makes Law sigh again. Why does he surround himself with stupid people again? Oh yeah, he doesn't know. "But it's not like it's my fault! You could've sent a simple text saying 'sleeping' or something, but noooo."

"I was ignoring you, you stupid!" Law says bitterly and Shachi looks scandalized for a moment before his attention is turned back to the TV once more. Law decides then that it's pointless making Shachi get out, even if that is what he wants the most at the moment.

He grabs Shachi's legs and takes them off the couch so he can sit beside him. He won't be falling asleep so soon, hell, he probably won't fall asleep at night either because that's just how fucked up his brain is. He may as well have company, and thank God said company has his mouth shut and is watching a show Law has never heard about in his life in a channel he didn't know he had. But the show is actually kind of interesting, a bit way over sexualized, but still interesting. Something about weird and funny ways that people can die in a very detailed and graphic way, and apparently everyone that dies is either a whore or an asshole.

The bad part of it though, it's over too soon. And that means Shachi's mouth will start working pretty soon and he's going to ramble about something that Law has absolutely no interest on, and that means his headache is going to be stronger and will torture his brain way more. Shachi starts talking about the death he thought was the best in the episode (Law doesn't agree with that but okay) and that somehow turns into a slightly traumatizing dream Shachi has had in his teenage years and then he ends up saying what had brought him to Law's apartment in the first place. It takes longer than what Law had expected, considering that it's Shachi he's talking about.

"So yeah you're coming with me, Penguin, and Jean to this party and you're going to relax for the first time in your life and have fun."

"Okay, first of all," Law starts, putting one lifted finger in front of his face. Shachi rolls his eyes, but he doesn't interrupt him. "I went to parties before, it isn't going to be the first time in my life. Second of all, I won't go to that party."

Shachi frowns to that and crosses his arms in front of his chest, he was probably trying to be somewhat intimidating but failed completely once his mouth turned into a small pout. "Oh come oooon! You're no fun! Why not?"

This can't be his luck, it just can't. Nobody's that stupid. "Did you miss the part where you woke me up because I was exhausted and sleeping?"

"Exactly, you were! You're not any more so it's okay! Also, the party is not in five minutes so you still have time to take like four naps like the old man you are!" Shachi insists and sits up, his legs folded underneath him. Law could easily strangle him right now. "Please- Don't make me bring Penguin and Jean here to help me coerce you!"

"I think you mean force me, not coerce." Law points out, because he can. He doesn't get why Shachi is insisting so much. It's been three goddamn years since he started insisting on bringing Law with him to every single party that just happened to be at a very inconvenient time -like this one- and that Law had no interest whatsoever in going. Normally, he gives up after a few nods and glares from Law but today though, he's insisting too much, even for a pushy person like him. That can only mean one thing.

"You want me to be the DD, don't you?" Law says in the most death tone he can manage at the moment. He hopes that it, along with an hopefully blank expression will show Shachi just how much he doesn't want to go.

"Yeah?" He asks, uncertain. He better fucking be uncertain right now. "Look, you know Monet? We share a bunch of classes?" Law has no idea who that girl might be, he has never heard her name before, or at least never paid enough attention to memorize it. But Shachi must've thought his silence meant that he knows her -or it isn't that important if he knows her or not- because he just keeps going. "Well she's throwing this party, a huge party may I add. And rumors say there will be a good amount of alcohol and drugs. I really want to try those candies out, you know. But I'm not stupid, I want someone responsible for being in charge of me and my car, like you! Jean and Penguin will appreciate that too."

"Then you guys better find another responsible person, because I'm not going," Law says and turns off the TV when the commercials start to annoy him. He stands and opens the front door, holding it open and motions to Shachi get out like he should have done a long time ago. "Now get out."

"Don't be like this Law! You spend all your free time here closed!" Shachi says, not moving a muscle to get out. And he obviously isn't paying much attention to Law's life, otherwise, he would've known that he actually spends most of his free time inside Bell-mere's rather than inside of his own house. Not that Law is going to be the one telling him that, being the weirdo Shachi is, he probably would go there so he can see what has caught Law's attention.

Which has only been his spot, the coffee and the fast internet, nothing more so it's not like he would find much anyway. But still, he's weird enough to go there and stare at everyone just because. "And I'm missing our buddy time! We don't do anything together lately."

"So, me taking care of your drunk and high ass is your ideal of buddy time?" Law asks and there's a little change in Shachi's expression that tells him he didn't see things in Law's point of view, like he never does. "Get out."

Shachi stands and starts walking his way out. He passes by Law and looks at him with what Law considers a bad attempt of puppy eyes. He closes the door as soon Shachi is outside and then goes take a shower when the guy starts begging on the other side of the door. He hopes that annoys the neighbors just bad enough for them to kick him out of the building.

By the time he gets out of the shower, his headache has lessened, but he doesn't remember ever feeling more awake. He contemplates the idea of going to Bell-mere's now, but then he remembers it's almost eight and that he wouldn't buy a coffee so if Nami is the one behind the counter, she would obviously tease him about finally order something other than coffee. And it's not like he can be there without ordering anything. If Luffy was the one behind the counter, well it wouldn't really matter.

He decides not to go.

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When midnight arrives, Law finds himself staring at the ceiling with his eyes fully opened and adapted to the darkness of his room. He was supposed to be asleep like hours ago but no, he's counting the few dark spots on the ceiling caused by the humidity of that spring that could only be considered spring in Drum Island.

He ends up going to that fucking party. Because he's an awesome friend like that, contrary to what popular demand says about him (aka Shachi and Penguin when Law refuses to do something they want him to).

But it's not like he could fall asleep with the thought of the only three people that had managed to tolerate him in the entire campus dying of overdose or alcohol poisoning because of course, they would go without him and obviously they didn't find another responsible person to go with them. Because, let's face it, Law is the only responsible person they know. Yep, those pastries are totally turning him into a soft hearted person he sure wasn't.

He dresses some mildly clean clothes (because he's going to babysit, not to impress) and calls Shachi to know where the fuck that party is located. Shachi beams at him and talks fast and Law can barely understand what he says over the loud music of the place. He has most definitely drank more that what he should've already. Fucking idiot.

He calls a taxi and proceeds to tell the guy behind the wheel what he managed to understand from Shachi's slurred speech. He doesn't ask any questions, just nods like he knows the place already too well, maybe because he has taken there more people than what he can count during that short period of time. Let's be honest, if that party is anything near Shachi's description, he probably has.

Law pays attention to the roads and takes mental notes from the places they pass along the way because, in a few hours, he's going to be the one driving Shachi's excuse of a car with three drunk and high idiots in the backseat back to his apartment so they can crash there for the rest of the night and Law can keep an eye on them.

He's such an amazing friend.

Soon enough they enter in a weird looking neighborhood and Law can hear the loud music even before he can see the place. He wonders why the hell the people living there still haven't reported the noise to the authorities, it could've saved Law's time, although he would probably need to go to the police station to pick up the idiots either way. But then he notices that all the houses look inhabited. They look too damn good and showy to be abandoned though, so it probably means they belong to those rich families that have four or five different houses just for vacations. They're ridiculous.

Then cars badly parked on top of the sidewalk appear in Law's eyesight and the last thing he knows, the taxi driver is kicking him out in front of a weird and huge white house that is way too much illuminated. Law's sure the aliens can see the fucking house from space.

He pays and calls Shachi again to know where inside that thing he is. He picks up in the fifth call when Law is seriously preponderating just go back and leave their sorry asses all by themselves.

Law can only pick up the word pool from Shachi's speech and well, that's probably all he needs really, a house just has one pool, right?

He enters through the closed but not locked huge front door that both resembles a castle and a factory, Law doesn't know how that can be appealing as a front door to anyone. But then again, what does he knows about doors. He finds Shachi and Penguin by the pool, or better, inside the pool. They seem to be having a great time with some chicks wearing their reduced bikinis, but Law doubts being in a pool fully clothed, drunk and probably high counts as having a great time. Sure they have boobs in their faces and that's all both of them only care about, but still.

"Yo Shachi! Penguin!" Law calls, trying to be louder than the excuse of music playing. He manages to catch everyone's attention but he ignores them all when both Shachi and Penguin beam and try to swim towards him. They fail miserably and end up coming towards him by jumping in the water. The few chances they had with those girls, well they are long gone. "Time to get out before you both drown."

They groaned, but Law keeps with his authority and sober figure and soon enough he's helping them both getting out of the pool. He gets soaked in the process, but at least he has prevented two drownings. He takes them far away into the ridiculously huge garden, the farthest away he can manage from all the light but since the fucking house looks like a power station, the difference isn't much.

"Where's Jean?" Law asks and only Penguin seems to have listened to him, but he apparently has no idea how to form proper words. Law wonders exactly how much they had drank or consumed already. "Okay I'm going to call him and he better pick up for your own good."

He grabs his phone again and calls Jean, whom surprisingly picks up in the second call and sounds, well, way sober than those two soaked idiots. He tells him he needs help to get them into the car because he can't carry them both at the same time. Jean doesn't sound annoyed for them to be going so soon, even though two in the morning isn't particularly 'soon'. Law guesses he wasn't having the time of his life Shachi had promised. He doesn't blame him.

Law helps Penguin and Shachi sit on the lawn (because one never knows if their knees may collapse) and then waits for Jean to arrive. Law's only mildly pissed with their behavior, you would think two guys studying medicine would be smarter, but no. When Jean arrives and sees his friends sitting and almost falling on top of each other, he seems a bit pissed too. He's also drunk, Law can see it on the way his eyes are watery and by the questionable walking technique as he does his way towards them, but at least he can still think and talk and be, you know, useful.

Law grabs Shachi's left arm and puts it on top of his shoulders. The guy just giggles and burp in Law's ear like the civilized person he is. His breath smells horrible and his soaked clothes feel weird against his side, but Law's a good friend. He just has to remember that until he arrives at the car to prevent dumping Shachi right there in the lawn and cause him a concussion.

Jean follows behind him in a not so stable way, but then again, he's grabbing an already passed out Penguin and practically dragging him with his legs brushing against the pavement. Penguin deserves to have his knees skinned, to be honest. Law doesn't exactly know how, but both he and Jean manage to get out of the party in what could be considered record time and without having that many problems to get through all the bodies dancing inside.

"Do you know where Shachi's car is?" Law stops and looks back at Jean who looks ready to pass out right there. Law hopes he doesn't, have to carry three bodies is way too much bad luck, even for him.

Jean shakes his head in response as he comes closer to where Law's standing. "I didn't come with them."

Great, Law thinks, fucking great. He shakes Shachi and asks where he has parked his car but the guy is useless. Law sighs out loud and curses in a completely new language before he shoves Shachi against a nearby car and pins him there, then he starts searching for the car's keys in all the pockets. He doesn't bother asking in which pocket they are because he knows Shachi wouldn't remember.

He finds his wallet and his now completely useless phone because he and Penguin decided to have a swim fully clothed and with all the things still inside their pockets just because they're geniuses. When he finally finds the keys he's beyond thankful and surprised that they still work. Law lifts his arm in the air and starts clicking the button to open and close the car doors.

It doesn't take long for them to spot a car whose lights keep going on and off down the road and they start making their way towards it. He lets Jean put Penguin in the backseat first before he puts Shachi. Law enters the car and waits for Jean to crash beside him in the passenger seat before he pulls out of this fucking weird neighborhood.

Law tries his best to remember the way he came from just an hour or so ago, he doesn't want to get lost and have to drive around until he finds the right way. He doesn't have enough patience for it, neither has the car's gas tank enough fuel. Jean falls asleep within five minutes of driving and he really hopes the guy wakes up when they reach his building. There's no way he can put the three of them inside of the elevator all by himself.

He looks through the rear view mirror more times than what he wants to admit to check if the idiots in the back are still breathing. Law doesn't want to know how they would end up if he hasn't shown up to save their drunk asses. They would probably end up falling somewhere in the ground and stay there until morning daylight woke them up, that is, if they managed to get out of the pool in the first place. Law has such stupid friends, he needs to find new and smarter ones that's for sure. Well, at least it's not his backseat of his car that is getting soaked with alcohol and chlorine.

The drive to his apartment takes longer than what he first anticipated and by the time he tries to wake Jean up it's already past four am. He's glad tomorrow-no, today is Saturday. Jean does wake up, although he doesn't really do much besides smashing the button to keep the elevator's door open and holding Shachi's arm with more force than what probably was necessary to prevent him from falling as Law goes back to the car so he can drag Penguin with him.

Overall, they all get into Law's apartment in one piece. Jean helps Law getting Shachi and Penguin on the floor and setting the coffee table in a corner where it doesn't bother anyone before he crashes on the couch and passes out, leaving Law all by himself.

Law sighs again before he goes to his bedroom and brings everything that could be considered mattress, sheets, quilt or blankets with him along with all the pillows he owns. He spreads everything on the floor, putting extra pillows near the couch in case Jean rolls out of it and falls.

He takes of Jean's shoes and jacket before he undresses both Penguin and Shachi from all the soaked clothes they have glued to their sorry bodies and takes off their shoes too. Law leaves the underwear of course, and hopes it is awfully uncomfortable down there in the morning. He dresses them some old shirts and sweatpants he doesn't use anymore but still has stored just in case a situation like this happens. His apartment is cold most of the time after all.

Then he drags them both, one by one, to the pallet he just made in the middle of his living room and carefully puts them in the recovering position, just in case one of them decides to throw up and to prevent choking or drowning and a horrible death like the ones on that stupid show Shachi made him watch. He puts blankets behind both of them so they won't roll back onto their backs. They better not throw up, they better fucking NOT throw up.

He goes to the kitchen and puts Shachi and Penguin's useless phones on top of the counter, they can decide what to do with them in the morning. He then grabs a bunch of water bottles. He forces them to drink a bit before he leaves the bottles in convenient places for when they wake up and feel like they have just crossed a desert. He checks them one last time to see if there are any indications of alcohol poisoning, but when he can't see anything he just makes his way towards his room to see if he can get some sleep. He leaves the door open, just in case.

He's such a responsible person.

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When Law wakes up again, it's almost eleven in the morning but he still feels dead tired. But worst than still being tired after waking up, is waking up starving so he gets up and goes to the living room where the idiots are still snoring loudly in the same position Law had put them before going to sleep. He hopes every muscle of their bodies is too numb to be functional ever again.

He opens the curtains and lets the surprisingly sunny day illuminate the room. The three of them groan when the unrequited strong light hits their faces, then try to cover themselves with all the blankets available but there's no way Law will let them go back to sleep. He cares for their headaches as much as they cared for his when he had to go drag them out of the fucking party which is basically saying he doesn't care at all.

"Rise and shine fuckers." He tells them loudly. "We're going to get breakfast."

He goes back to his bedroom to get dressed and when he gets back and they're all still laying in the same spots, he starts distributing kicks. He makes them drink water before he throws their shoes at them. Then he pushes them all out of his apartment and inside the elevator. Law doesn't give them new or clean clothes, they will go with the very ones they have dressed and slept into for all he cares. And it's not like it's that cold outside today.

Law makes them enter inside Shachi's car before himself. They grunt and groan with all the noise around them but he couldn't care less, he's starving. Maybe next time they will remember this painful experience and think twice before they decide to go wild. And it's not like breakfast won't do them any good anyway.

"Where're we going, Law?" Shachi asks from his place the backseat. Law looks at him from the rearview mirror. Jean is sitting beside him, glaring at Law like all the shit in the world is his fault. Law smirks at him and then proceeds to honk when a crazy person in a bicycle almost throws himself in front of the car. That action has the exact same results as Law was hoping for. He's having too much fun with their misery.

"Get breakfast." He simply responds and soon enough he's parking not far away from Bell-mere's. He could've made them walk, punished them a bit more. But unfortunately for him, that would make him have to walk along with them too. And the tiny bit of sleep he managed to get the other night between all the times he got up to check if everyone was still breathing or if anyone had thrown up wasn't enough to fill even half of his energy bar.

"Come on, I'm not getting younger here," Law tells them when they take way too much time to get out of the car. Then he holds the Bell-merè's door open because that thing is fucking heavier than what it looks and closes by itself if no one holds it. Once they're all in, he motions for them to go sit down on his usual corner and to grab some nearby chairs, since his spot only has two. He makes his way towards the counter where an also tired looking Luffy seems surprised.

"Good morning there!" Luffy greets him as soon as Law is close enough. "Although your friends don't seem like they're having such a good one."

"That's what they get for being annoying pains in the ass," Law mutters. But Law's not here to talk about how stupid his friends are, he's here to talk about breakfast. The coffee shop looks calm, that's good. That means no customer will interrupt him or complain about how much time is taking to order. "I'm going to order big this time." He warns him.

"I'm all ears." Luffy grins and seems pleased with himself, even though he hasn't done anything to be pleased about.

"I'll trust Nojiko with my friends' breakfast. Tell her I need food that contains bananas, eggs, every berry that you have in the kitchen. Dried nuts would be good too. Oh and tea." Law tells him and rises one finger for each thing he asks for. He ends up with his hand in the air like he's expecting a high five so he quickly puts it down before Luffy could have the same idea. He totally looks like a guy who would give Law a high five just for the sake of it.

Luffy nods a few times like he's trying to process everything and his eyes keep looking straight into Law's. It's weird, but not weird enough for Law to look away, after all, Law has never lost a staring contest and this is not going to be the day he does. "Okay, gotcha," Luffy says, after a few awkward seconds. He was the one that looked away, Law won again. "And for you?"

"Just coffee," Law responds almost instantly because he's way too used to that order.

"You know drinking just coffee alone isn't going to help your hangover much, right?" Luffy asks with a smirk. Yeah, Law knows but he also knows Luffy is going to bring him food either he orders it or not, so what's the point of ordering in the first place. Plus, he can steal bits of the food he just ordered for his friends too.

"I'm not hungover." he ends up explaining instead and Luffy huffs and mutters 'of course you're not' in response before he turns away to go inside the kitchen. Law should have felt offended, either it was due to the fact the guy didn't believe he isn't hungover, or the fact that he thinks Law doesn't have the capacity to be hungover. But he doubts Luffy said it with any malice, and he's feeling too tired to be offended anyway.

He turns away when he realizes his order must take a bit too long to be done and goes sit between Shachi and Penguin that are looking at him with weird expressions. "What?" He demands when he catches Jean also looking at him like he's from another planet. He's been receiving that look way too many times lately.

"I didn't know you had other friends aside from us three," Shachi says and he looks, hum, a bit pained maybe? Like he's sad Law didn't tell him he made a new friend. Which, by the way, he hasn't. Besides, Law does have other friends than them.

"Luffy is not my friend," Law tells them.

"Oh, and they're on first name basis already," Penguin says and makes an overly surprised expression as he looks at Shachi, whose expression then matches his. "How long did it take us to be on a first name basis, Shachi?"

"Months," Shachi responds and then both of them start nodding furiously at one another, their eyes wide open. God, they're so weird. And that only happened because they were too damn annoying for their own good and keep on insisting and getting under Law's nerves instead of acting like normal people. "That can only mean one thing, right Penguin?"

"Yes indeed, Shachi."

"That is...?" Jean says sounding annoyed, but looking curious at the same time. God, and the weirdness is contagious.

"That Law's finally improving his social skills thanks to our influence, obviously!" Penguin states and then the three of them start laughing hard and annoying everyone inside the place. Law groans loudly then, has the sudden desire to hit the wall with his head, he should've let them both drown in that fucking pool.

"Oh don't act like that!" Penguin says and punches him in the arm.

"Yeah! It's great that you have more than three friends!" Shachi then adds and earns another round of laughter. Law wants to scream near his ear that he fucking has other fucking friends, but even that way, he doubts those words would reach his small brain. "Plus, that barista guy seems cool."

"I don't think he considers me a friend really, or at least he has said so a bunch of times already," Luffy says, suddenly appearing out of nowhere and making them all jump in surprise. Didn't anyone tell him that sneaking on people is a bad habit? Or that hear people's conversation is also a bad habit? Then again, they weren't exactly having a quiet conversation.

"Oh speaking of the devil." Penguin grins and then points to the two trays Luffy's holding. "Now gives us the goodies!"

And just like that, their table is full of food that Law sure as hell won't pay for all alone. There is a plate with crepes that contain half of a banana inside and that are covered with whipped cream and a pinch of cinnamon. Right next to it there is a clear glass with strawberries, blueberries, and what appears to be almonds and granola on top of yogurt, along with four bowls and small spoons for them to be able to eat it. A big plate full of brown colored cookies and two different kinds of muffins occupy the center of the table. Beside it, there's a plate with toast and blueberries on top, and from all the food available, that is the only one Law isn't going to try out.

Luffy leaves after making sure everyone has a cup of green tea in front of them, except for Law that has his usual coffee mug with the yellow paper on the saucer. Law doesn't have time before Shachi picks the paper out of his reach and reads, _**I hope this breakfast will bring you guys some sort of eggsxcitment for the day!**_ out loud.

"Oh, he's such a cutie!" Penguin says with his mouth already full with a cookie.

"Why haven't you told us about this place before, huh?" Shachi says and shoves a yellow colored muffin inside his mouth."I'm totally coming back every day now."

"That's exactly why I didn't," Law mutters to himself, but he's conscientious the three of them have heard him, if the round of laughter that follows is anything to go by.

In the end, Law finds out that the crepes also have cinnamon and vanilla; that the cookies have canola, and chopped walnuts and dried apricots. That one kind of muffin tastes like bananas and cinnamon while the other kind has strawberries in the middle, and Jean tells him the toast also has beaten eggs, vanilla extract, and maple syrup. Overall, the food is ridiculously good (Law will trust Penguin's sonnets about the toast) and all of their bellies are surely ready to explode.

Law tries to be sneaky as he puts the yellow paper in the pocket of his jacket but he's sure Shachi has seen him, though he doesn't make any sort of comments about the subject. They take the now empty plates and cups and Law's mug to the counter like Law has told them to, and then they do some sort of circle around the register trying to split the abnormal big bill. There are a bunch of customers behind them that keep on complaining and demanding them to hurry the hell up, but Luffy just laughs when Shachi drops a huge quantity of coins to the floor and when Penguin starts drooling with the pastries on display, so fuck the other customers really.

When they finally leave the coffee shop, there is an entire line formed only by angry and impatient customers that glare at them as they make their way out. Law only feels slightly bad for Luffy.

Law drives them back to his apartment so they can grab all the shit they have left behind and return the clothes Law has handed them. Law gives Shachi his car keys so he can be the driver from now on and once everyone is out, Law proceeds to organize all the dirty clothes he has spread around his apartment so he can go to the laundromat just across the street.

He skips lunch (but it's not like his stomach has any space left for anything) and spends most of the afternoon surrounded by washing machines doing laundry.

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 **Feel free to PM me ^^**

 _ **Remember to surround yourself with friends whenever you can.**_


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey, there guys, so I want to apologize** ** _again_ for this delay, the chapter should've been up ages ago. Anyway, my school went on strike last week which meant my classes only started at eleven am and my teachers were crazy and I had to have "extra classes" and yeah. So no time to go to the library.**

 **And this week was the election week in my school which meant, even more, craziness and stuff and events happening in every break. So no time to go the library either.**

 **As for this chapter, I'm not that happy with it, but I couldn't make you wait any longer. I've written and rewritten it multiple times but it still feels weird for me, hope you don't feel the same.**

 **I've also tried to incorporate more dialogue, which may be one of the reasons I don't like it that much. But talking is important so I better get used to it.**

 **As for the next chapter, it will be up in two weeks, but honestly, no promises. Who knows what the fuck my school may decide to organize in this near future.**

 **Either way, I hope you enjoy this chapter^^**

* * *

Law doesn't go to Bell-mere's on Sunday because Shachi had asked him to come to his house so they can have the buddy time that Shachi always rambles about missing. He wants to say no, that he has enough of him for the whole weekend, but truth is, Law does know how sentimental and emotionally attached to someone Shachi can be. And well, the fact that he's sentimental and emotionally attached to him does suck, but Law isn't that kind of an asshole, most of the times at least. They end up watching a movie marathon of Scary Movie and Penguin and Jean join them by the time the third movie is playing on Shachi's computer, and okay, Law does have some fun.

But because he didn't go to the Bell-mere's on Sunday, he felt like he has missed something important when on Monday late afternoon, he tries to open the coffee shop's door only to find it closed. He tries to look inside, through the glass door, but when he doesn't manage to, he moves to look through the windows because the sign hanging on the door says 'open', so the place should be, you know, open. He doesn't see anything either though, and he's not sure if it is because the tinted windows don't let him see through or because the place is too damn dark inside. Well, if there is anyone inside, they must be laughing hard at the figures he's doing. But then again, Law can't hear any laughter -or any noise at all- coming from inside.

He wonders what the hell must've happened before he does his way to the coffee shop that has now become his official second choice. The guy behind the counter is still the same as the other day, and he still looks at Law with a weird and unimpressed facial expression, but at least now Law doesn't have a cup of coffee from the competition and already knows the WiFi password so that saves him from two awkward situations.

He leaves one hour later with an empty stomach and more stressed than ever because the internet was so fucking slow that it took six minutes just to open Google. The fucking google.

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On Tuesday, he comes sooner but still faces a closed door again, so that means it wasn't a change of the closing time. The sign is still on the wrong side so something must've happened for sure. He fights the urge of trying to take a sneak peak through the windows again, he knows he wouldn't see anything. He's not in the mood to go to the substitute coffee shop again because he feels like if he goes too many times there, he will eventually become a regular or at least a familiar face to whom appears to be the only employee of the place, and he doesn't want that. He's a loyal customer okay, even if his favorite coffee shop keeps failing on him at the most inconvenient times.

He ends up calling Jean to go meet him at the library of the campus so they can exchange notes about physics. He misses coffee and sometimes he has to read the same thing twice because he wasn't paying any attention the first time, but he doubts he will die if he doesn't drink one one day. Overall, it ends up being quite a productive study session if Law is being honest, and he actually found himself taking a few pictures of the notes Jean managed to write in a much more resumed way than him.

So, everything's good.

When he finally leaves the library, four or so hours later, the sun is already setting, or so it seems like it. It would be a cool thing to see, if it wasn't for the fucking clouds and the fog that cover the sky and streets. As he walks home, he sees as the little sunlight that had managed to get through the sky's wall becomes fewer and fewer until the night takes over.

He doesn't exactly know why, but he finds himself walking through Cocoyashi street even though he has long ago discovered it isn't a short cut to his apartment at all. He only uses it when he has to go to Bell-mere's and when he heads home, he always walks back because it's way faster if he just goes around it.

He also doesn't know what he was expecting when he's facing a closed door again. It's not like the place is open at that hour even during what he considers normal days. He had checked once or twice when he remembered at the last minute that he still needed to do something internet related, like send an important paper via e-mail that counts as a third of the final grade, ridiculous. Those days happened to be coincidentally ones where Luffy was the one in charge of closing Bell-mere's. He had let Law in to do whatever he needed to do, with his computer on top of the counter, while he cleaned and arranged the rest of the place.

Come to think of it, Luffy has saved him and his grades a few times too many and he isn't giving the guy enough credit for it. Law kind of owes him a big time.

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On Wednesday, Law's there again, because faith is the last thing standing and he doesn't want his bad thoughts about the fact that his new favorite coffee shop might have closed all of a sudden, just like the last time Law considered a coffee shop as his favorite, to be true. He's still a bit traumatized by his loss, and he's not sure how his poor college ass would overcome another one.

Law can't be that unlucky for it to happen to him twice, he just can't be.

And the things appeared to be going well, the business and all. The place was crowded more times than not now and they sold pastries nonstop all the times just because they looked that good and tasted even better. They wouldn't put food in front of you only to then say it's on the house (even if Law does pay for it in tips) if the business wasn't doing alright.

But then again, what does he know about businesses. Plus, the business of his previous favorite coffee shop also seemed to him to go in full swing and look what it has become now. A fucking flower shop that's what it has become. Goodbye coffee machines, hello plant pots.

He's faced with a closed door again, but now the sign has the right side showing so that means someone has been there at least. He doesn't know if that's a good or a bad thing though. It could be the new owners, already doing some changes inside, that got tired of customer after customer trying to open the door, only to walk away and decided to put the sign properly to not confuse more people for all he knows.

He decides to knock at the door because what does he have to lose anyway. At least that way, he may get some answers if someone does open the door, even if it's someone he has never seen before that opens it and gives them. No one opens the door though, so he knocks again, and again, and again, and he keeps knocking until the knocks become bangs and he starts feeling angry because he doesn't know what's happening, and he's not sure how the hell on Earth he hasn't broken the glass in the door. Fucking good glass right there that's for sure.

The door does open though when Law's ready to punch it again, so he calls it a win. Sure, it was an angry and tired looking Nojiko that opens it and she doesn't seem that pleased to see Law at all, but at least someone opened it.

"And why are you trying to break my fucking door exactly?" She demands, her brows frowned.

She doesn't even open the door fully, just enough for her head to get through and to show her posture of 'don't you dare annoy me any further' with her hand on her hip. Fucking rude. Well, at least it's still her fucking door so the place isn't for sale. _Or wasn't sold yet_ , he hears his brain saying far away into his skull. Stupid brain and its negative behavior.

"Shouldn't it be opened in the first place?" Law asks, his expression matching hers in annoyance and then, well she looks confused.

Like she doesn't own a place customer related that needs an opened door for said customers to come in so business can happen.

"I mean you could at least put on a sign if you're rebuilding the place or selling it, you know, so people that depend on your coffee like me don't freak out and know it's time to move on and find another coffee shop."

She looks at him with a weird expression then, like he somehow turned into a being from another planet and said something that made no sense or was uncharacteristic of himself. He knows that expression far too well though, it's basically one of the reasons he doesn't socialize with other people when Shachi and Penguin are around.

"Are you crazy?" She ends up asking.

Well considering that he's in college, doesn't sleep enough for years and is addicted to caffeine, which he has been deprived off, by the way, uhm, "No?"

"Then why the hell are you here for?" Ouch okay, her luck is that she's a girl, she could be on her period and all that shit and she also cooks delicious pastries that Law eats almost every day and well, no one messes with a girl on her period. Or someone that takes care of the food you eat. Or both in this case.

"Maybe to get some answers? Like for why is the place closed?" Law says with as much sarcasm he can manage to put in two phrases.

He closes his arms in front of his chest but he doesn't stay that way more than probably five seconds because his computer bag hanging on his shoulder is weird under his arm as he does so.

"Oh, so you don't know," Nojiko then says low, the angriness of her features being swallowed by the tiredness.

Law's not sure if he was supposed to hear it in the first place. Only then he sees the darkness under her eyes and how she looks older than when he first saw her, even if that time didn't last longer than five minutes. Then he remembers that he actually doesn't know how old she is in the first place and has only seen her from afar when she brings new pastries to put on display, or that one time when she was forced to leave the kitchen.

"Well come on in then. If you help I might as well make you a coffee." She says and opens the door fully, stepping away for Law to be able to pass through and then she closes and locks it right after. Probably not wanting more customers to appear and see that if they knock hard enough they will get attended.

The inside of Bell-mere's is not new to Law, at all. He has seen it crowded and with only a few people inside; has seen it right after the opening of the day and way after the closing time when Luffy let him in. He has seen the place ready for customers and has seen it with the chairs on top of the tables leaning against the wall. He has seen it all, all the facets of the place, and yet he still feels like he has walked into a foreign territory as soon as he puts one foot inside. There's no sweet smell of the pastries or the smell of caffeine in the air, there is no cozy feeling, there is not magic, there is no nothing. Just the same furniture in the same place as always which tells him the place wasn't properly closed.

"So you're not selling the place?" He asks, leaving his computer bag on top of the counter (there's no way someone would force an entrance just to steal it anyway) and proceeds to follow Nojiko to the kitchen. The glorious kitchen where the sacred pastries are made and nothing more happens.

"Of course not. I'm making money out of it so why would I?" Nojiko says.

Law doesn't answer her question because, well rhetorical. At least Law was right, the business is going well and they're not selling the place. That's really good. If Law hasn't already had the goal of becoming a surgeon, he would totally be an awesome business man. Okay, probably not.

As it turns out, the glorious kitchen has a not so glorious weird smell that Law can't quite figure out what it is. It's like something has soured and it's not at all the best smell to have inside of a kitchen. He doesn't know what he's supposed to be doing there in the first place, in what the hell he was supposed to be helping with, so he just leans against the island at the center and crosses his arms in front of his chest. There is no strap to muddle him his time so he just stays there staring at Nojiko like she knows all the answers, which in this case, she really does.

"Are you going to help me or be a creep?" Nojiko then asks as she ironically throws a bunch of crepes in the trash bin.

Law remembers then that reference in one of the firsts Luffy's puns. So that's what smelled bad. Well, that means she really didn't come inside the kitchen in this three days in a row hum. He takes a proper look at the kitchen, the home appliances seem to be good and everything seems to be well organized on the shelves beside him. But in the island that Nojiko is focusing her attention on, there are containers and used utensils like she had been interrupted while baking. Also, wow, so many wasted pastries right there in front of Law. It's a heartbreaking image.

He comes to stand beside her after he realizes what she's doing. He takes the trash plastic bag from her left hand and holds it open with both of his hands for her to throw an entire container with cake batter inside of it because the trash bin can't contain anything more.

"What do you need me to do?"

"You can start by doing exactly what you're doing." She says and smiles slightly at Law, though it doesn't feel like a smile at all. "Then you can take everything outside. There's a door to the back there." She does a head movement to show the door's direction with her chin.

Law didn't know they even had one. So maybe Luffy doesn't spend all that time inside of the kitchen with Nojiko, maybe he goes outside to do what god knows what and comes in again when Nojiko warns him there's a new customer. Yeah.

Law holds bag after bag open while Nojiko throws away food, plastic containers, and kitchen utensils when she sees that it would take too much effort and work to clean and save them. Law feels like he's holding open a bag for food abortions and he hates himself for it. He can almost imagine himself in that exact same place, only he wouldn't be throwing away food, he would be there giving Nojiko advice about some aspects of her food where he thought he could help, telling her she should put fewer cloves on the mystery cake or to let the shortbread cookies a bit less time inside of the oven. But come to think of it, he couldn't do that without sounding arrogant since Law has never even had a full conversation with Nojiko, just a few nods whenever she came out of the kitchen and he was eating. He hopes she understood that it meant the pastries were good.

And he wasn't exactly expecting the first time of them having an actual conversation to happen under this specific circumstances.

"I didn't imagine my entrance in this kitchen like this." Law ends up muttering because he can't stand the tense silence between him and her.

He normally doesn't mind silence, actually prefers it most of the times, and it's not like he's her friend or that he cares about her that much to the point of being pushy, he just doesn't like tension in the air. Especially if he doesn't know the reason of said tension.

"Like what?" She asks and then throws at least a dozen muffins that didn't even make it to the oven inside the bag.

"Oh, you know." He shrugs and puts the plastic bag on the floor. "Me and you, inside of the kitchen where the pastries I've been eating lately are made. Throwing away containers with ruined cake batter. It's not that appealing."

Nojiko huffs but then laughs a bit and shakes her head slightly, so he calls it a win. "Sorry for ruining your dream then."

"You better be." He tells her, pointing a wooden spoon covered with a weird pink colored batter at her.

She looks at it and then motions for him to throw it away too. Beyond salvation huh. This place will seriously need utensils and containers after this ravage. He helps her put everything she considered as worth saving inside the dishwasher and then pack the bags of sugar and flour in their respective places. After that, Law follows her again and goes grab the things that were on display.

They throw everything away too and it's mildly sad considering they still looked good.

When Law realizes there isn't anything that belongs in the trash now, he takes the bags in one hand, along with the trash bin in the other, outside and throws everything into a big trash bin. He comes back again and is forced by Nojiko to wash his hands which wasn't necessary really. He would have done it without her demanding to do so. He knows about bacteria and hygiene okay.

"Shouldn't we give the pastries on display to a homeless or something?" Law asks while drying his hands with a kitchen cloth.

She shakes her head in response and then explains, "They aren't edible now."

Well they still looked more or less good, sure they weren't that shiny vibrant color they are when fresh, but they couldn't be that bad. A bit dry maybe. Okay, they probably tasted weird now. She made them so she must know.

"I'm making cakes for the homeless later on, don't worry. I have the fridge full of cake batter that I managed to save in time."

"Need help with that?" He asks. She looks at him with one of her brows lifted, yeah he also doesn't know why he is being so helpful.

Nojiko does a dismissive hand gesture, which first of all, rude. "You've done enough. Come, I'm making you a coffee."

And just like that, she's forgiven. He hopes she at least knows how to do it properly, like Nami and Luffy do because he's already missing a good coffee way too much to be considered healthy. He's already so addicted.

Nojiko stops by the coffee machines Law still considers weird looking and barely leaves space for him to pass between her and the counter. He ends up hitting his hip with too much force against Nami's fucking high chair that only she uses for some reason. That means Nami was the one attending customers the last time Bell-merè's was open, hum. He goes around the corner and occupies a seat on a nearby table, he contemplates seating on his spot but that way he would be a bit too far away from Nojiko if she decided to, for some reason, stay behind the counter.

Minutes later there are two coffee mugs on top of the table and Nojiko is sitting in a chair beside him. The coffee tastes a bit better than what he's used to, but that's probably because he hasn't had a proper one in what his body feels like ages and was craving for it hard.

"So where's your sister and Luffy at?" He asks after a while of silence. He's tired of silence, they had cleaned the kitchen mostly in silence. He's getting a bit too impatient right now. "Don't tell me they decided to go on vacations at the same time and didn't warn you."

She glares at him for a few seconds, but then she must've remembered Law doesn't have a fucking clue of what's happening and her features soften a bit. "I wish that was the case actually."

"Just spill already would ya," Law tells her, a bit harsher than what he intended but whatever, he waited already for too damn long.

Nojiko grabs her coffee mug and holds it tightly while looking through the window where the night has already started to take over. The lights of the coffee shop aren't on and she doesn't seem to have any intention of turning them on, but Law doesn't complain. The light that comes from the lamp just outside and that must've switched on not longer than a few minutes ago is enough to illuminate at least enough of the place for Law to be able to see Nojiko. He waits again, but he starting to get a bit pissed. That's why he isn't going to be a psychologist or a psychiatrist, he wouldn't stand those patients that take too long to spill their problems.

"I and Nami have been at the hospital these past few days," she starts and pointedly doesn't look at Law. He doesn't really care though, as long as she talks he couldn't care less bout the eye contact. "Luffy has had an accident, I thought you knew considering he talks about you like you're his friend."

She pauses and looks at Law then. He doesn't tell her they are not friends because what does it matter at the moment. But he guesses she had realized that by now, considering he didn't know shit.

"His brother Ace, he has-had a motorcycle and usually did rides around the country with his friends. Like those bad ass motors, you know. Anyway, whenever those rides were here in the area, he always took Luffy with him. Only this time, a fucking truck decided to just cross a red light."

"Are they okay?" Law then asks and Nojiko shakes her head. Of course, they're not, Law has noticed her correction. Well shit then, and Law there worried the fucking place had been sold. Fucking idiot.

"Ace and- I don't know if you have heard about him or not, Whitebeard?" She asks and Law shakes his head in response. "Doesn't matter now anyway. They died before the ambulances even arrived, the truck just fucking took them. And Luffy," She lets a laugh then escape her mouth, but that's the bitterest laugh Law has ever heard. It isn't a happy one, it's like she's confused and incredulous and can't believe what fucking happened. He doesn't really blame her. "No one really knows how but he managed to survive. Ace's motorcycle was fucking cut in half you know. Ace's part was smashed against the front of the truck while Luffy- I don't even know. They said he probably continued going, inertia or something and passed between the wheels. He somehow managed to get to the other side of it."

"Is he okay then?" Law asks and realizes just how stupid his question is. Of course, the guy isn't okay. He decides to rephrase his question before Nojiko's glare kills him. "Is he conscious?"

That seems to do the trick, well more or less. Okay not really, but at least she doesn't seem ready to jump on him and rip his throat with her teeth. She leans against the back of the chair instead and closes her eyes, probably trying to find the right words to explain Luffy's condition. Only then Law realizes she doesn't know he's studying medicine, and neither does Luffy or Nami. He doesn't tell her that fact now though, doesn't tell her that she can use the complicated terms all she wants that he will understand her perfectly fine. In fact, that's the only time Law waits without trying to push an answer out of her.

"He's alive, not conscious, but alive." She starts, her voice low and her eyes still closed. "When he got to the other side of the truck he went flying on the asphalt and got himself burned and scratched, nothing too serious. But when he hit the road the last time he landed on top of the exhaust pipe or something and people weren't fast enough to get him away. It caused him a three-degree burn on the chest. They said he's going to make it with only a big ass scar."

She remains still after that and for a moment, Law wonders if she has fallen asleep. But a man comes and tries to open the door and Nojiko's eyes open instantly, her head snapping in the man's direction. The man seems confused at first to find the door closed and tries two more times before he moves to the window and tries to take a sneak peak. At that moment, Law feels like he's seeing himself facing the coffee shop closed for the first time, only that time, he thought that if there was anyone inside they would be laughing at him, not having a conversation like him and Nojiko are having.

Law would prefer to be laughing as the man goes away with confusion splashed across his face.

"So you and Nami," Law starts again after a while of silence and when the man is long gone, "have been at the hospital this whole time?"

"Yeah," she mumbles, "She thinks he will immediately wake up the second she leaves the hospital so she has practically stayed there the whole time."

"You don't seem to like hospitals that much," Law states before he can stop himself. He shouldn't, but he's a bit curious about why she says the word hospital so bitterly like the mere fact of saying it out loud offends her. "You can tell me to mind my own business." He then adds when she stays quiet, staring at her still full coffee mug.

He's not sure if she even has had one sip. Law has drank half of his while Nojiko was staring through the windows, but his mug is now forgotten in front of him. He has lost all the appetite for caffeine he had.

"My mom's last year was spent closed inside a hospital. Saying I don't like them is an understatement." She explains and looks at Law with an expression that tells him quite specifically to not push that subject further. And he had no intentions to.

So Law guesses coming to the Bell-mere's was just an excuse for her to leave the hospital, even if it was a really good excuse, considering the ruined food and all. Law understands why people don't like hospitals, there are only a few good reasons as to why one should be there against way too many bad reasons. Law doesn't like them either, the bright lights and the white walls. He always thinks of them as a bad irony, as the light some of the patients see before they die. But truth is, great things can happen inside of a hospital, and are those that Law is aiming for in the future, having a person's life depending on him, on his hands and on his skill; feeling like he can choose for a split second whether or not someone dies, even if that's not entirely truth.

He wonders if Nami hates hospitals like Nojiko does, he bets she does. And yet, she's still there all the time worried Luffy is going to wake when she's not around.

"Is Nami there now?" Law asks and stands up, making his way towards the counter to grab his computer bag before he even gets an answer. When he looks back at Nojiko again, she just nods. "Then I'm going."

Law doesn't exactly know what he was hoping for when he just stood there, looking at Nojiko and waiting for her to say something. "I can take you there if you promise you'll convince her to at least come out to get fresh air."

But he's glad he did. "Deal."

.

.

.

Law waits for Nojiko to open the door and close it after him, then proceeds to follow her to the small parking lot at the end of the street that now has tourist buses parked more times than not. Today though, that's not the case and Law spots Nojiko's supposed car, a blue pickup, parked all alone easily. He has to make room for himself in the passenger's seat and shove all the papers and what appears to be maps aside. He's careful not to ruin or crush them as he does so.

He waits for Nojiko to enter her car and soon enough they are on the road at a speed Law's sure already crossed its limits, but he doesn't complain, he's not in a place to. She doesn't say a word all the way to the hospital so Law keeps his mouth shut too. He wonders if she's just naturally quiet or if she just doesn't want to have anything to talk to him, or if maybe it's due the circumstances they're under.

He helps her find a spot to park in the hospital's parking lot that sure as hell needs an expansion with the amount of cars that it has parking. He ends up spotting an old woman just leaving a bit ahead and then both of them have to wait until she does the apparently so difficult maneuver to take her car from under the tree-shaded spot. Nojiko doesn't waste time after that and parks way too aggressively.

They do the rest of the way walking past through the groups of people that are currently leaving, the visiting hours not lasting more than probably an hour now. The inside of the hospital is what can be considered an organized chaos, with people seating in the plastic seats as they wait, and groups of nurses and medics that are on their break to drink a coffee or are doing their way outside to smoke. There's a line at the reception where a tired looking old woman gives visitors cards for them to be able to pass through the guard and see their respective friends or family hosted in one of the hospital rooms.

It takes a while to be their turn and Nojiko proceeds to tell the woman Luffy's name and room number. It's the first time Law has heard about Luffy's surname but he doesn't think much about it. The old woman only gives them one card, stating that Luffy can only receive two visitors per time and that there is already one person with him, whom Law guesses must be Nami. They are shoved aside then, by a weird looking couple that may be the only ones that are excited inside of the place as they ask for their cards, Law's not at all surprised when he overhears they're going to the maternity ward.

Nojiko then grabs his arm and brings him closer enough for her to talk just loud enough for him to be able to hear over the noise around. She tells him to go, that Nami's there and that she will wait outside. She gives him the card and tells him the room's number and the floor where Luffy's at, even though Law just heard her saying the exact same thing at the reception, and that it is all written on the front of the card.

"I will tell her you're waiting." He tells Nojiko and receives a nod in response.

She's paler than before and Law can see her hands grabbing her crossed arms forcefully, her fingers pressing her skin. He starts doing his way towards the guard then, and when he looks behind, he's not surprised to see that she's not there anymore. He shows his card to the ridiculously tall and muscled guard and passes through him with only a pointed look between Law's face and the card.

He enters the big elevator and has to share it with one old patient in a wheelchair and with what appears to be his son, considering the similarities on both of their faces. The guy must've taken his father for a walk outside and now it's time to bring him back to his room. They exit the elevator on the floor below the one directed to the intensive care.

The burn intensive care unit is at the very end of a very long and white corridor that makes Law feel as if it doesn't have an end at all. Law has to walk and cleans his hands every time he sees a sanitizer because he's starting to feel paranoid with all the probabilities of Luffy catching an infection because of him, which okay, aren't really that many considering Law is Law and won't touch him. But the probabilities are still there.

The first thing he notices when he enters the unit is the obnoxious sound that gets louder and louder every time he passes through patient's room door. He sees a woman leaving, fat drops falling down her face. She's wearing a protective garb and gloves, and her mask is under her chin but still stuck to her ears. She doesn't lift her eyes when she passes right beside Law. Only then Law realizes just the difference between them, Law doesn't need to be wearing any of that, which means Luffy's in a much better condition than the patient the woman was visiting.

Law soon enough reaches Luffy's room, the sound coming from inside getting louder as he enters. He comes closer to the bed where Luffy lays unconscious. The first thing he notices are all the things attached to Luffy's body and the ventilator covering his mouth, making him seem smaller and more vulnerable. He's pale, but Law's not sure if the white sheets along with all the whiteness of the room itself are the reason he seems to have such an alarming kind of pale or not. The room is mostly empty, aside from Luffy's bed equipped with all the machines and the chair Nami is currently using. There's a TV high on the wall, but it's black screen doesn't do much other than reflect the two people in front of him like a bad mirror.

Law approaches Nami, who's curled up in a fetal position on the chair right next to the bed. She seems uncomfortable while sleeping, her hair falling half over her face and the other half to the back of the chair. It isn't as shiny and well arranged as Law's used to see, but it still provides the only color inside of the room. Law touches her shoulder and shakes it lightly and feels only slightly bad for waking her up. She wakes in a jolt, and looks at Law, first confused then with what appears to be some sort of anger.

"What are you doing here?" Nami asks, her voice low and her left hand coming to rub her one of her puffy and red eyes. She looks miserable.

"Your sister is waiting for you outside," Law tells her instead and she stares at him while her sleep brain makes sense out of his words. Then she looks at Luffy, laying still on the bed and doesn't move a muscle to get out. He understands her want to stay, but it's highly improbable that Luffy's going to wake in that already less than an hour left of visiting time. "You should go home and have some rest-"

"I'm fine," she cuts him off and doesn't look up at Law, "I don't want him to awake and be here all by himself. He will be too confused."

"You have done enough already today," Law tells her, but she doesn't look convinced. "So what are you going to stay here all the time? What if he stays like that for months, are you going to move in?" He then adds, harsher than what was probably needed. But she finally looks at him and he knows she got the point, she shouldn't risk her own health just because she wants to be here to support and comfort Luffy the moment he wakes up. She can't exactly help much if she's exhausted and looking almost as dead as Luffy, can she.

And yet she still shakes her head, like a toddler refusing to eat all the vegetables on the plate. "The visiting time is almost over, I can go home after the nurses kick me out."

"Exactly, it's almost over. Come on Nami, go home, you're not helping much if you fall asleep." He tells her, lower this time because he's aware they're not alone in the hospital, things some people on the neighbor room don't understand. Law seems uncomfortable and maybe a bit embarrassed by the fact she fell asleep and had to be awakened by no other than Law himself, as if somehow she had failed at super visioning Luffy's body. "I can stay here and watch him, if it makes you feel better."

She looks at him again, but this time her look is different, somehow. He's a bit self-conscious then, being under her gaze his only mildly uncomfortable to stay the least. He doesn't really know why he has said that, it just came out of his mouth without his brain having enough time to filter and rethink about it. As he holds Nami's weird gaze, his hand finds its way to his computer bag and firmly hold the strap as if his subconscious his giving him some sort of excuse for him to be there. Not that he needs one, but he guesses it wouldn't do any harm to use the hospital's internet, even if just for half an hour.

"Would you?" She asks after a while and Law nods in response.

She sighs, heavily but rises from her seat, motioning with her hand that it now belongs to him. She grabs her large purse from under the bed and then extends her hand in front of him, her palm facing up. It takes a few moments for Law to realize she is silently demanding his phone and he quickly takes it out of his jeans pocket.

"In case he wakes up in your turn." She says and then hands him his phone, now with her phone number and her name showing on its screen. He doesn't think twice before he calls her, only to quickly turn off after he hears her phone ringing somewhere inside of her purse.

"In case he wakes up in yours." He tells her, receiving a small smile in return.

She leaves after that without saying anything else, leaving Law by himself once again. Only this time, there's an unconscious Luffy laying on the bed beside him. Law doesn't know what he's doing with his life anymore. He wasn't expecting to be at the hospital visiting no other than his unconscious barista when he woke up this morning. But one thing Law's sure, he's one hell of a good customer.

Law grabs the chair and puts it farther away from the bed, then he takes out his computer from the bag and quickly connects with the open WiFi the hospital has to offer its visitors. He's careful to put both the chair and the computer on certain angles so Law can see Luffy's messy head in the background besides his computer screen. He starts typing, but without really paying much attention to what he's writing. His brain managed to block out the sounds and beeps caused by all the machines around him so they've stopped being annoying after awhile.

He tries to pay attention to his computer screen but it ends up being an impossible task so he just closes it. It's hard for Law to concentrate on his assessment when he's in the environment he's hoping to be _his_ environment in the future. It's hard to focus on a computer when he has so many machines that he learns about in his boring morning classes. It's hard to look away when everything is there, in front of him, attached to Luffy's small body.

He should be worried, but he isn't. He's excited, there's no other word for it other than pure excitement. Which is bad, is cold from his part because Luffy's just there, unconscious, a third-degree burn on his chest that will leave a permanent scar and a brother just counting the time left to go to the grave. It's horrible if Law really thinks about it, but he doesn't want to.

Luffy will be alright, will get better, will survive, and that's all that matter to him because Law didn't know his brother, and isn't Luffy's friend to worry about him that deeply. That has nothing to do with him. Law's just there because Nojiko told him to get Nami out of there, and because Nami told him to keep an eye on Luffy otherwise she wouldn't go.

Law packs his computer back inside of his bag again and raises from his seat to examine the room while he still has time. He knows most of the equipment by memory, not because he really needs to for any of his courses but because he wanted to know, wanted to familiarize himself with everything, even if it is still too fucking early to be familiarized with anything. Shachi would call him obstinate if he was here.

Soon enough there's a nurse in the room asking for Law to leave with an apologetic smile on her face and it's disturbing.

"You better give me a fucking yellow paper tomorrow," Law mutters as he takes one last glance at Luffy, because Nami would've killed him if he didn't. The sound of his voice echoes through the room but it's quickly swallowed by all the beeps.

He leaves after that and, surprisingly enough, he doesn't really want to.

* * *

 **Feel free to PM me ^^**

 _ **Remember that everyone has problems that they should face or learn how to deal with. Avoid avoidable problems and drama and focus on important things instead.**_


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey guys how have you been? Happy New year to you all! I hope 2017 will bring more humanity, common sense and good choices, I guess we're kinda lacking on them.**

 **So, I know, too much time to update again, and I'll say sorry, again. My school started this Tuesday (yey me) and that means internet, kind of. Also for some reason, I have already test tomorrow and next week too, my teachers can only be sadist. But yeah, this was supposed to have been updated the days after Christmas, but shit happened.**

 **Anyway, this one is huge, I guess it's the biggest chapter so far and I want to write the next ones with this length from now on, so yeah, it will probably take a while for the next one. Sorry.**

 **Also, IMPORTANT, I officially changed the rating to M, be aware of that. I can't make you stop reading but I can warn you. There are no descriptions in this chapter, but there will be in the next one for sure. You've been warned.**

 **I hope you enjoy this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it^^**

* * *

On Thursday, Law arrives sooner. The Bell-mere's once again closed but Law as seen Nojiko's car parked in the parking lot so he knows she's there. He will not be fooled again. He does his way, as usual, only this time, he doesn't knock the front door open like yesterday. Instead, he goes search for that alley where he sent to the trash all of those pastries and knocks on its door. That way, he's preventing any other potential customer to see him enter the place -because he assumed he will enter the place again- and want to come in too.

Nojiko opens the door after a few knocks and looks a bit surprised to see him, but it disappears in a split second and Law's sure that's because she was expecting him to knock at the front door, not the back one. She doesn't say anything, not even a hello so Law doesn't bother either, only enters through the door she's holding open and barely even letting enough space for him to get through.

When he enters the kitchen he's more or less pleased with what he sees. That's more like what he thought he would see in the first time, not a messy kitchen full of dirty containers and an acid and sour smell like yesterday. Yes, there are also dirty mixing bowls and baking utensils everywhere, but at least Law knows they were used today and that will have some sort of salvation, unlike those unfortunate ones with cake batter so stuck to the bowl that looked more like cement than anything else. There's a sweet smell filling the place too, along with a brief combination of chocolate and flour.

He decides then he likes the kitchen like this the best, although he's aware it would be even better if Luffy came in, stole one of the still hot cupcakes and then Nami hit him in the back of his head.

"I'm making the cakes," Nojiko says and hits Law on his arm with a kitchen cloth, as if telling him to step the fuck aside already. She then opens a big oven, embedded on the wall just behind him, and takes out four cakes, one after another. She puts them all on top of the island and takes them out of their respective forms. "I would offer you a slice, but they're for the homeless. Guess you'll understand."

Law has to bite a response that was just ready to come out of his mouth because he doesn't want to start gaining more enemies now. He has enough already.

"How's Nami?" Law asks instead and leans over the counter where he hopes he isn't blocking the way.

"Better I guess. Actually slept. But she was at the hospital as soon as visiting time started." Nojiko says and looks at him with a small smile on her lips. "Thanks for yesterday, by the way, I don't know what you did or said but whatever it was, it worked so yeah, thanks."

"No problem," Law says and is only mildly uncomfortable. He's not used to people thanking him, mostly because he doesn't usually do good things to people, and when he does, his friends tend to not really thank him. He's not used to it, and doesn't know how to deal with it either. But he guesses it's a thing he will have to eventually get used to, considering the amount of lives he's planning on saving.

"What did you tell her anyway? I want to know the persuasive secret so I can use it when you're not around."

"I didn't say anything in special, I think. Just that I would cover her shift for her." Law says and Nojiko's looks at him with that look that tells him she was not expecting that. She was probably expecting him to be like the caveman he is sometimes and to drag her out of Luffy's room by her hair, or probably was expecting him to tell Nami all the things she's doing wrong as a visitor. Law's sure Nojiko wanted the "persuasive secret" to be something she could do herself, and Law already knows she wouldn't take over Nami's shifts because of her most probable trauma with hospitals.

"I see," Nojiko mutters and starts pounding the cake batter furiously until small bubbles start to appear on top. "She complained all the way home though, but said you stayed and would call if Luffy woke up. I just thought she would be the one making you stay there against your will, not that you offered to stay voluntarily."

"Probably she was the one using persuasive secrets on me," Law tells her and receives a snort in response.

"Probably," she mutters. "Anyway, are you going today too?"

"If you give me a ride I will think about it," Law says and reaches out his hand, mostly as a joke. He wasn't expecting her to dip her hand into a flour bag and then shake his hand though.

"Deal." She says and returns to her work. "I will be ready in a minute, go ahead and use the internet for your nerdy stuff for a bit."

Law tries his best to not feel offended as he does his way to the place where he should be, to begin with, but he still glares at Nojiko's back before he does so. He doesn't use Internet for nerdy stuff, he uses it for purely scientific purposes and research. That was one hell of a rude way to treat a customer, especially one as loyal as Law himself. Maybe that's why she only interacts with customers when she's obligated to and spends most of her time in the kitchen. Maybe it doesn't have that much to do with her culinary abilities and more with her attitude. Nami's sure better at being polite and faking friendliness.

He goes sit at his spot and turns on his computer. Nojiko could've given him a slice of one of the cakes, it's not like the homeless would mind, and could also make him a coffee but no, she's that kind of person. Law wished he knew how to work with all that machinery, he could start making his own coffee if this current situation takes long to get over with and Nojiko refuses to make him one.

That's the customer Law as turned into. He has turned into a customer that stopped coming for the food, stopped coming for the coffee, and started coming only to have a place with internet to seat, all alone and in the dark because Nojiko didn't turn on the lights again. And that's also what Bell-mere's turned into. It stopped being a cozy and warm place to become a dark and cold one, stopped being full of people -but not overly crowded- to become deserted, stopped having that delicious smell of pastries and coffee to have just a faint of it as Nojiko's takes cake after cake of the oven.

Half an hour passes before Nojiko emerges from the kitchen, and she comes with her hands-free, no plate nor yellow paper. The stinginess sure runs in the family. She looks at him with a weird look he can't quite figure out, like she's annoyed Law didn't magically guess she was ready to go and continued doing his work instead of pack his computer and all his shit. Like she's annoyed to have to wait for Law to do just that as she stands there behind the counter, hand on her hips.

Like she's the one that has a reason to be annoyed. Yeah right, like she was the one that had to sit in the dark and cold with nothing like a scalding hot coffee to warm her inside.

Law follows her back to the kitchen and doesn't have enough time to appreciate, or even properly look at all the boxes containing the cakes for the homeless, all piled up, as he is practically shoved outside and almost needs to sprint to keep with Nojiko's pace while doing their way towards her car. The woman must be crazy.

"Did something happen?" Law asks while climbing to the car.

"No." She responds and Law can't see anything more than pure sincerity. And maybe a bit of confusion because of Law's question. And probably a bit of madness too. Yeah, the woman is most definitely crazy.

The ride to the hospital is as fast as it was yesterday and Law's not sure how they haven't been stopped by the police yet. Law also doesn't know how someone could give Nojiko's a license, or even a car. Law's not sure if he believes she's the one driving when Nami is also inside the car.

"Tell Nami I'm waiting here," she says after parking in the hospital parking lot, only this time, she didn't need Law's help to find an empty spot. She didn't make a move to get out of the car, so Law realized he was going inside alone. Well, it's not like he doesn't know what he needs to do to get in, and it's also not like she would've done anything while keeping him at least company in the way too long line to get to the receptionist other than stress out and glare at everyone that showed happiness. So yeah, it's probably for the best if she just stays in the car. She doesn't have the right to complain about the time she had to wait though, it's not like he could shove aside everyone ahead of him in line.

He stays in line for what appears to be ages and he's only mildly angry about the fact he's wasting visiting time while standing in the same place for decades. He doubts Nojiko's has called her sister to warn her Law's coming, she probably knows that calling would only give Nami time to sort out excuses to stay, and that's not what Nojiko wants. So Law just needs to wait and do his way up and maybe awake Nami again.

When it's his turn though and the receptions tells him the two cards are already taken, he realizes he has no other option other than call Nami. She has one of the cards, and since Law doesn't really know any more people within Luffy circle of friends, she's the only one he can ask for it. He calls her, and waits a good amount of time before she picks up. The only reason that doesn't make Law feel even more pissed is because he has seen the bag where she puts her phone in, that thing is huge and must carry just so much shit that Law feels bad for her back.

"Yeah?" Is the first thing she says when she picks up, her voice low.

"Are you in Luffy's room?" Law asks, even though he already knows the answer. He can hear the beeps in the background.

"Yes I am, are you planning on coming?"

"I'm already here and I need a card," Law says, annoyed, and hopes the 'just come the fuck down already and give me the card and leave because your sister is waiting for you' is implicit. Law gets shoved aside while people pass past him more often than not, even though they have plenty of space where they can walk and still have a five-foot gap away from him, and that only gets him more pissed.

This is not a good day for Law's mood, that's for sure.

"Okay, be there in a minute," she says as Law's once again shoved in the ribs, good thing he's at the hospital and will be helped immediately if one of his ribs break. He moves out of the way and leans against the near wall, hopefully far away enough from the pathway to be safe. Law ends the call then, before she can say anything else just to show her how annoyed he is for having to wait.

Law waits and gets more and more annoyed as the times passes by and there's still no sight of Nami passing through the tall and emasculated guard. He wonders if she didn't pick up the urgency in Law's tone of voice, or if Luffy has awakened the second she put a foot outside his room, or if maybe she's stuck inside of the elevator because there's no way she can take that long to get down.

He ends up glaring at everyone that dares to cross in front of him, and that includes two little children that he's sure he has somehow traumatized. A few moments later, he spots orange in the middle of the crown and crosses his arms in front of his chest before Nami can get near him. She finds him easily, almost immediately if he may add, as if she felt him glaring. Apparently, his glare hasn't lost his power, but then again, he's has been deprived of Nojiko's baked goods. He knew that amount of sugar inside of his systems wasn't doing him any good.

Law watches as Nami starts making her way towards him, and he frowns his brows more with every of her steps. A blond guy with a weird haircut follows behind her, and it takes Law a while to remember his face. He has seen the guy a few times too many inside of Bell-mere's, ordering and flirting with Nami so bad it was both painful and hilarious to see. So together they had the two cards, the guy better be the one returning his own card to the receptionist thought, Law only needs Nami's and there's no way he will be the one returning it for him.

"Ah, there you are!" Nami greets him a bit too loud. "Alone in the corner, as depressing as usual."

"Yeah, whatever," Law says, his patience only held by a very, very thin thread. "Just give me the damn card will ya?"

"Okay take it already," she frowns and gives him the card, then she turns to the blond who keeps staring at Law with only one tired and puffy eye. It's so weird. "By the way this Sanji. Sanji, this is Law."

He keeps staring at Law before his mouth forms a smirk, as if realizing something, which makes his face even weirder. "Ah so you are the famous Law," he starts muttering then, the smirk never leaving. "I've heard a lot about you, it's weird how the descriptions actuality match the reality."

Law wants to ask just what he has heard about him, and what descriptions he's talking about but he decides against it. Who the fuck cares anyway, Law has already wasted too much time there in the lobby. Plus, Sanji is definitely the weird one, not Law. "Can't say I've heard a thing about you." Law ends up saying instead and the smirk leaving Sanji's face is totally worked it.

"And you're also as rude as they told you were," Sanji mutters again and Law wants to punch him, only Nami does if for him with a well-given punch on his shoulder.

"Stop it," Nami tells him and he immediately backs off, just like a puppy scared of the owner. It's disturbing. Then Law remembers what he has overheard once in Bell-mere's, back then the guy did go after Nami like a lost puppy and obeyed her without complaint, at least that's the impression Law got once the conversation changed subject. Although Nami still seems to don't care at all about it or him, not now and not back then.

But fuck it, Law doesn't like drama and he sure as hell doesn't want to know anything related to their somewhat relationship. He doesn't care. And it sure isn't interesting if Law can compare them to a dog and the owner, it doesn't really seem healthy for either of them.

Law nods a goodbye at Nami and ignores Sanji as he starts doing his way towards the guard, now with a card hold firmly on his hand. He was rude, he's aware of that, but he couldn't care less. And it's not like the guy was the miss sympathy to him either. He takes heavy steps as he does his way to the elevator, and he knows he must be irradiating five different kinds of anger when a mother of twins almost crunches her children between her and the elevator wall, just to keep them away from Law's aura.

He sighs, because he's being ridiculous and more childish than a child. But it's not really his fault, yes he woke up with a mood slightly worse than usual but people just keep teasing and mocking him, which only makes him angrier. He takes less time to reach Luffy's room, as he already knows where it is located and doesn't need to stop and inspect every room's number.

Luffy is still in the same position, still with everything attached to him and the image would be a peaceful, almost angelical one if it wasn't for all the annoying beeps and the almost cadaverous look in Luffy's face.

"I think I need that tea you keep giving me when I have bad mood," Law mutters as he passes past Luffy's bed and goes sit in the chair, near the window. Law watches Luffy's face, hoping for some twitch in his expression, something similar to what his face did when Law actually ordered food with only hand movements, although he knows it will take a while for Luffy to smile that brightly again. Luffy doesn't move, as Law was already expecting, but he knows Luffy must've heard him, even though he won't obviously remember anything once he wakes up.

Law doesn't know what he's doing, or why he's even there. It's stupid, how many people even visit their baristas at the hospital? Law realizes then that if Luffy wakes up when he's there, he will have no clue of what to do. Sure, Law knows what happened, but it was only the resumed part of the story, he doesn't know any details, so he wouldn't be able to explain Luffy anything aside from the fact he has had an accident, will have a permanent scar and just lost his brother. How do people even tell this kind of news to the person involved? How do people even approach this subject, do they just spill out everything in a row or should they take easy steps? Law knows that depends on people, him for example, would very much prefer if people could just put everything on top of the table and not let his brain have time enough to process the meaning of the words, he knows he would've preferred it that way when doctors said Rosinante died. He would've preferred if they told him straight away and overload his tenth-year-old brain with information he did not comprehend on a whole, instead of being as patient and sympathetic as they were and with those stupid facial expressions as they had. He would've preferred it so much more.

But for Luffy, it may be different for all he knows. He may get shocked or traumatized if the information comes in just one go, or it may be the other way around, Law doesn't know. So Law really hopes Luffy wakes up soon, but he also hopes he won't during his turn, because he doesn't know if it would do Luffy any good to discover what happened through him.

Law feels dislocated, he has only met Luffy a few I ago and has not had one single full conversation with the guy. And yet there he is, seating on a chair beside his unconscious body. If Luffy's friends come they will find the fact Law's there weird, to say the least, because he's anything more than a stranger. Law only knows Nami and Nojiko in Luffy's circle of friends, and Nojiko keeps staying the hell away from the hospital and Law takes Nami's place beside Luffy's bed, so he's all by himself. If two of Luffy's friends come together when Law's there, hoping to see Luffy also together, Law will be inevitably be taking the place and the card of one of them. And has he the right to do that? Who would Luffy prefer to see, prefer to explain to him everything once he wakes up? Would the answer be one of his friends or Law, one of his customers?

That's kind of an easy question to respond, isn't it?

So Law decides then that, if one of Luffy's friends come and ask if he can give his card to another that's still waiting in the lobby, he will not think twice before going away. He doesn't have a place there, he's just covering for Nami's shift.

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On Friday Law contemplates the idea of not going to the hospital when he receives a message from an unknown number Law deduces belongs to Nojiko, telling him not to go to Bell-mere's hoping for a ride, that she won't be there. He contemplates the idea, yes, but he still goes anyway. The message just told him Nojiko wasn't in the coffee shop, not that Nami wouldn't be at the hospital like she apparently always is.

So he goes, and since he doesn't have a ride, he has to take a bus, an overcrowded bus if he may add. Law doesn't know how that many people can manage to fit inside of such a confined space, and he feels like a packed sardine when they just keep entering and squeezing the ones already inside and no one fucking leaves. At some point, he can feel someone grabbing his ass, and he turns around in full force to glare at whoever did it. But the people beside him are the one that glare at him, showing their displeasure for the fact Law basically just shoved them all while turning around, but it's not like it's his fault to be taller and need more space than all of them. No one grabs his ass again during the way, so he guesses it was just an unintentional accident. Or maybe there was just a pickpocket trying to steal his wallet from his pocket, only to then give up after discovering Law's wallet is not in his jeans.

Law knows how to keep his belongings safe, they're all inside his backpack, deep inside, and there's no one that can open it without Law noticing, he has made sure of it.

When he arrives at the hospital, Nami's there alone so the receptionist gives him the last card. But only when Law enters Luffy's room he realizes this time he can't really tell Nami to go home, because Nojiko isn't there to take her. Only then he realizes he will have to stay the two hours remaining of visiting time with her. Only then he realizes he didn't really think it through.

"Oh," is the first thing that leaves Nami's mouth when she sees Law, standing awkwardly by the door, unsure if he should risk it and enter or not. She has a book now resting on her lap and her hair is caught on a weird bun that somehow suits her. The look she shows tells him she's truly surprised by the fact he's there. "I didn't think you would come today."

"You thought wrong," Law says as he enters the room. He starts doing his way towards the seat beside Nami that wasn't there last time Law visited. He receives a snort in response when Law waits for Nami to take her purse from the seat so he can seat, hitting with his foot on the floor just to show impatience.

"You know I'm not going home today though, don't you?"

"Figured, yeah."

Nami nods, not really bothering to pretend to feel a least a bit excited to have company. She looks in Luffy's direction, and for a moment Law wonders if she has seen him moving or something, because she keeps staring for a long time. Law can see her eyes are not focused on Luffy though, can see that she drifted away and wonders if it's this way that she passes her visiting hours. If she brings books and ends up not really paying attention to them until eventually, she falls asleep, if no one's around.

Law takes his notes from his backpack and spreads them on his lap and harm's chair, trying to make the less noise as he can manage while doing so. He can feel Nami's eyes on him now, as if wondering what the fuck he's doing, only to then judge him.

"You're such a nerd." She ends up saying after Law's all set and he doesn't bother to feel insulted. He's actually surprised she took so long to insult him. It's now obvious the two sisters share the same opinion about him.

"I'm thinking about my future, not being a nerd."

"If you say so."

They fall into silence then, Law's mind absorbed by his papers and Nami's absorbed in itself, and it's quiet, maybe too quiet. But Law doesn't mind to just hear the machine's beeps and Nami's heavy breathing beside him, or at least, he doesn't mind too much. He can see Nami opening her book again, and readjusting into a more comfortable position on her chair by the corner of his eye, but after a while, she still hasn't turned a single page. Law wants to talk to her, wants to fill the silence and to get her out of her own mind, but it's kind hard to do so when one doesn't really have anything to talk about.

Law knows what she's doing, she's overthinking, it's not that hard to figure out when he's always over thinking himself. He knows the sighs, and knows how it is. He wonders what she may be over thinking about though, which doesn't really concern him but it's more interesting than paying attention to the principles of pathology. He wonders just the amount of cost she's having with Bell-mere's closed so many days in a row, he wonders if she can afford those costs, he wonders if she's even thinking about that right now.

"When are you planning on opening Bell-mere's again?" Law asks and sees Nami coming back to reality when he looks at her, waiting for a response that she seems to not have. Guess she wasn't thinking about that in the end. It's weird thinking that Nami, for once, isn't thinking about the money she's losing. She doesn't know the answer, that much is pretty clear. Law doesn't even know if the coffee-shop is in condition to wake up to life again, at least not with only one employee available. Nami wouldn't be able to stand behind the counter all by herself, no matter how fast and efficient she is, she would only end up with a nervous breakdown.

And Nojiko's has her job in the kitchen and won't help her much during rush hour.

But she can't be waiting for Luffy to wake up, recover and go back to work for it to open again, it can take weeks, if not months. They will be bankrupt by then. "You need to find another employee."

"Don't be stupid, I'm not replacing Luffy," Nami bites back and closes the book with more force than necessary, the clap echoing through the room and corridor.

"Then find him a temporary substitute," Law says, remaining calm. "Luffy can come back when he's recovered."

"Yeah because finding a reasonable employee in this fucking town is that easy, especially one that doesn't mind if they get fired the day right after entering service because Luffy has recovered. It's not that easy Law."

"So is Bell-mere's better closed?" Law asks and raises an eyebrow at her.

"Of course not, but it's just-"

"I have a friend that used to work at the coffee shop on campus and that needs money." He cuts her and she seems interested, slightly. The responsibility to warn his friend of the job's peculiarity being only on Law seeming to catch her some interest.

And Shachi wouldn't mind it anyway, it's not like he really needs money, it's more that, that way, he gets more space maneuver when it comes to the amount of money he has available that Law's sure shouldn't be that much by now. Plus, he did work at the coffee shop on campus and he did good, the only reason Law didn't go there was because there was always too many college students confined inside a small place with coffee and Internet, and Law rarely managed to find a free chair to seat most of the days. Shachi resigned from work when he noticed he had saved a good amount of money and then couldn't occupy the place behind that counter again.

But he did well when working, and worked fast, and he thinks that's exactly what Nami needs right now, not the employee of the month, but one that knows how to do shit fast and properly.

"Then tell him to pass by Bell's tomorrow at four, he better not be late." Nami says before opening her book yet again, only this time, she's actually paying attention to the words written on them. So he calls it a win.

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.

"I've found you a job," it's the first thing Law says a few hours later when Shachi opens his apartment door for him. He looks lost and confused, the sleepiness and pillow marks showing on his face.

"What di- what do you mean you find me a job. I wasn't even looking for one." Shachi says and leaves space for Law to enter his apartment, closing the door after him.

"I know," Law says.

"Then, hum, why? I'm really confused right now Law."

"You said you would go to Bell-mere's every day, remember?" Law said, and Shachi's expression tells him he's trying hard to remember but can't. He doesn't really blame him, Shachi was hungover back then, of course, he doesn't remember shit, Law would be surprised if he did. "Well, now you can go every day. And tomorrow you better be there at four."

"Are you really serious about this Law? You really found me a job without even my consent?"

"As if you can talk about consent."

"Oh please Law, don't come victimize yourself to me, and don't compare!" Shachi says, looking offended. "Without your consent, I find you dates, I find you chicks willing to put their hand down your pants. Without my consent, you find me a job. Don't compare the two."

"It's funny how I care about your financial problems more than you."

"It's funny how I care about your sexual problems more than you." Shachi says bitterly and Law finds that this is exactly what he needed to get rid of his bad mood, a discussion, a big one where he can spill out everything, even if said discussion is with Shachi. Law knows he doesn't like discussions one slight bit but he couldn't care less right now. Shachi can be annoying when he wants, Law has the right to be annoying every once in awhile too.

"I don't have sexual problems!" Law bites backs. And it's true, he doesn't. He's sexually active, it's not like it's that hard to find an interested girl on campus. But apparently Shachi can't see that, or maybe he doesn't share Law's luck, so he just keeps on insisting that Law needs help with this, or needs help with that and keeps trying to play the role of matchmaker, as if he's better than Law at finding girls. Sure, he does find some pretty ones every now and then, but Law's sure the joy it gives him to see Shachi's frowns when he declines a date is way better than the joy he would get from the blow jobs the girls would most likely give him.

"And I don't have financial problems either!"

"Okay, fine, whatever. Don't go, I don't care." Law says, which is a lie, he does care, a bit. He wouldn't have recommended him if he didn't. "But next time you ask me if I can buy shit for you, don't expect me to say yes."

"Gosh, you're so vengeful! You know that?" Shachi says, he seems tired. Law doesn't expect the discussion to continue much further. He's actually surprised the old witch next door hasn't come complain about the noise they're making -even though it's still not that late yet- like she always does when Law comes to Shachi's apartment. "Why did you even suggest me? Do you want to have a friend behind the counter? Is that it? You want to have a friend making you coffee so you can have discounts?"

"You're being-"

"Why don't you ask that guy for a discount, I'm sure he would give it to you." Shachi cuts him. What Shachi doesn't know is that said guy already gave him discounts, if you can call free pastries paid in tips discounts. What Shachi also doesn't know, is that, right now, Law can't really ask Luffy anything.

Law realizes then it would be easier if he just explains the shit it's happening and that Shachi doesn't even have a clue about, so that's what he doesn't. It's hard to think that Shachi, someone so noisy and knowing about Law's life, doesn't know about the stuff Law's being doing lately, about his story with Bell-mere's and it's employees. It's hard to think that his best friend doesn't know shit about a part that as somehow become very important in Law's life, considered he used to know about everything. Law explains the story, not exactly getting into any details, just the important parts, and Shachi listens, his head turned slightly to the side as he eyes him.

When Law finishes, Shachi keeps staring at him as if wondering how the fuck he managed to not know so much shit about Law's life, and he knows Shachi will start paying more attention from now on because that's just how obsessed with him Shachi is. He has a need, a need to know what Law's doing or who Law knows, and Law doesn't mind, most of the time, just when he uses the information against him and starts making fun of him with Penguin. Then he shakes his head and pouts slightly once he looks at Law, and that's how Law knows he won.

The discussion ends there, as Law predicted, but he doesn't mind, he's feeling better already. They order pizza and start watching movies on Shachi big TV after that, and they only get up from the couch when the pizza's waiting at the door and when they need drinks for it to slide down their throats better.

"You didn't need all that sentimental crap, you know." Shachi tells him while shoving a slice of the second pizza inside of his mouth. "You convinced me when you said there were two chicks needing me. "

Law smiles, because he knows, that's the main reason why he included big boobs on their description.

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.

The next day, Law feels like crap and he's so grateful it's Saturday he can't even express it in words. He doesn't leave his bed until late in the morning and he regrets drinking those beers with Shachi as he does his way to his bathroom in a hurry. He feels tired, even though he hasn't done anything especially exhausting and has slept well during the last few days. As he looks at himself through the poor excuse of a mirror he owns and occupies a great part of the small wall of his tiny bathroom, he feels weird. He doesn't know what he's doing with his life anymore, and it's been awhile since he felt this useless.

He decides his hair needs a comb, but he's not in the mood to get one, not right now and not in a near future. So he decides to take a shower, hoping it can look reasonable without the accumulated oiliness. He stays under the hot water springs more time than what he should've, momentarily forgetting about the fact his water bill's increasing, and taking his time to wash every part of him until he can feel clean and his skin's pinkish.

Law stays inside of his apartment for the rest of the day, focusing on the studies he has been neglecting recently. He skips lunch because he doesn't feel like cooking or ordering, and he also skips the nap his brain's craving for because he knows he would only wake up on Sunday if he went sleep. And he can't afford it right now, he needs to focus on the papers in front of him, he needs to start stressing about the fact his finals are coming and about the fact the time he has left is just on counting down.

He knows studying with and headache and with an empty stomach isn't the best way of studying, that neither of his professors would be impressed by his study methodology. But he's in college, no one can really blame his study methodology, at least he has one. Plus Law does know the key to study is to not get too comfortable, and too warm while doing it. One should be a bit uncomfortable and with a bit of hunger and a bit of cold to be able to properly study, is one's too warm and comfortable they're most likely to fall asleep instead. And damn, isn't Law just uncomfortable, hungry and cold as fuck right now.

He doesn't notice the time passing by, in fact, he only notices he has been studying hours straight when he has to get up from his chair to turn on the light, the sunlight coming from the window dissolving into darkness as the building in front of his apartment covers the sun. Law feels like he has somehow teleported into the future, as if he just fast forward a few hours, it's a weird feeling. His ass's numb and he has to take a few steps around his living room. He goes grab his phone, still forgotten inside his bedroom and he's not surprised to see eight texts showing on its screen, one from Nami and seven from Shachi.

 ** _Your friend's late_** , it's all Nami's text says. It was sent two hours ago, at 4:02, of course, Shachi's late by those standards, the guy thinks up until half an hour late he's not late at all.

Law checks Shachi's texts after that.

 _ **Im going now wish me luck,**_ received at 4:05

 _ **Youre supposed to wish me luck asshole**_ , received at 4:07

 _ **NAMIS SO HOT WHY DIDNT I SEE HER LAST TIME**_ , received at 4:07

 _ **Im rll mad at you friends do introduce hot chicks to each other you know**_ , received at 4:08

 _ **AND SHE HAS A FUCKING SISTER?!**_ , received at 4:20

 _ **I hate you**_ , received at 5:30

 _ **But thanks for the job,**_ received at 5:31

Law smiles as he looks down at his phone. Nami didn't say anything more, if Shachi matched her expectations or not, even though he suspects they were probably really low, considering Shachi was late. But something Shachi must've done right, or maybe Nami realized she doesn't really have must choice other than him. Either way, Law's happy for Shachi, and happy for the fact Bell-mere's will finally be open again.

He sends a text to Shachi, telling him to stop by when his work's done so they can discuss how much of a good friend Law is. He doesn't get a response, and he's not sure if that's because Shachi's ignoring him like he thinks Law did, or because Nami doesn't let him answer his phone. Law suspects it's the later.

He goes back to his studies then, but can't really focus on them anymore. After a while and few read pages later, Law decides to pile all his shit at the end of the table and then makes his way to the kitchen. His fridge is a pure disappointment when he opens it, and his cabinets aren't in a better state. He wonders when was the last time he went shopping, then he realizes he doesn't remember.

He texts Shachi again, telling him to bring dinner with him. Only this time, Shachi does answer him, telling him he's a lazy ass and that he'll take two or so hours until he's out of work. Law doesn't mind that, he doesn't mind the fact he has two hours to kill without having anything to do at all. He's tired of studying, his head hurts like hell and, for the first time, Law really doesn't have anything to do, anything he needs to get done.

He contemplates the idea of going to Bell-mere's, but what for. He's not craving coffee, and he's still too stubborn to order food in presence of Nami. He doesn't necessary need internet, and he will be with Shachi in a few hours. And it's not like he enjoys Nami's or Nojiko's company or conversations that much.

 _You could go see Luffy_ , his mind tells him. But again, what for. Nami's not there for once, needing to be persuaded to go outside; and neither is Nojiko, waiting on the parking lot and probably glaring at the hospital's building in front of her. So it's not like he really has a reason to be there, and it's not like Law enjoys Luffy's conversations more than what he enjoys the two sisters' ones.

He decides to go shopping, even though he's not at all looking forward to the noise and lights of the supermarket just down the street, and neither is his head. But he needs essential supplies, he guesses, Shachi will bring dinner but he will need food for tomorrow too. So he goes, and hopes he will be back before Shachi arrives at his doorstep, Law will be damned if the guy finds out he went shopping because he had no food in the fridge. Law will be damned if the guy starts mocking him about the fact he forgot to fill his fridge.

The supermarket is overcrowded, like he suspected it to be, considering it's Saturday. Apparently, everyone does their shopping on fucking Saturday. The place's bright, too bright, and it would remind him of the hospital's white lights if it wasn't for the fact there were thousands of plaques and posters of promotions and sales hanging on in every aisle. The music is the first thing that annoys him, and it starts the moment the doors slide open in front of him.

He grabs a cart and starts shoving everything he thinks looks tasty or just because it looks good inside. He's hungry, he shouldn't be shopping right now. He broke so many rules of how to do things properly today that it's frustrating just to think about it, first it was with his study methodology, now with his shopping habits. He doesn't feel like a functional human being.

In half an hour, Law has seen what the whole place has to offer and has his car full to the very top. He has the brief sensation he's forgetting about something, but since he doesn't have a list or remember what's at the bottom of the cart, he doesn't have the slightest idea of what it may be. When he reaches the cashier, there's a huge line in front of him and he can't suppress an exasperated sigh from leaving his mouth as he makes his way to the very end of it.

A few moments later, he's seriously pondering of whether or not just leaving the damned cart forgotten in a corner and go home empty handed. But that would mean he just wasted almost an hour inside of the supermarket, throwing inside his cart things he's sure will be forgotten as soon as he packs them on his cabinets. And he hates the idea of wasting time, or at least, he hates the idea of recognizing he has just wasted his time. And if he just leaves now, he would have no choice other than recognizing he wasted time. If he decides to stay, he will waste even more time, but at least he will have unhealthy food to fill his fridge and stomach for a couple of days.

Law's lost in thought when someone hits his back with a cart. He really wanted to know the reason why people keep hitting him, it's like he's a human magnet. It's ridiculous. It's not enough to hurt him, after all, he's more than used to be punched and shoved accidentally by now, but it's enough for him to turn around and glare at whoever is behind him.

There's a green haired girl looking straight at him. She's leaning against her cart that's still way closer to Law than what he would like. She doesn't look apologetic at all, in fact, her smirk tells him it wasn't even accidental.

"Hey there," she says.

"Do I know you?" Law says instead. He can almost feel the blow Shachi, or even Penguin, would most likely give him if they were here. What a way to treat a girl, dumbass, they would most likely say.

For some reason, her smirk grows bigger. "We weren't formally presented," she says, her voice honeyed. "You were at the party I hosted, but left before I could say hi."

Oh. Law remembers her, okay not really, he has never seen her before. But the remembers Shachi saying something about the party's host, Monet or something.

"I didn't stay long," Law ends up saying.

"I know," she reaches out her hand in front of him. "I'm Monet."

Law smirks then, not because of her but because he remembered her name. "I'm-"

"Trafalgar Law," she cuts him. "I know."

Monet leans over her cart more, leaning over her forearms and resting his head on her left hand. Law doesn't miss the fact her breasts are squeezed together, barely fitting inside her caved tank top while on that position. And she doesn't miss the direction his eyes are looking either. "I was looking forward to meeting you on that party. Guess in the supermarket works just as fine."

"Guess so," Law mutters. The fucking line has to be the slowest ever. He takes a look at her cart and he's surprised to see mostly green inside, full of a huge variety of fruits, vegetables and good things to one's health. When Law looks back at his cart, he realizes he doesn't have any.

Monet starts talking again, and only stops when it's Law turn to be attended. She tells him they share a bunch of classes, a thing he already knew, and that she first heard about him when Shachi first came to her and started rambling about him. Fucking Shachi, he has to be everywhere.

For some reason, Law ends up waiting for her outside, his arms full of bags. When she passes through the slid open doors, she seems pleased to see him waiting, but not surprised. They exchange numbers before parting ways, and okay, maybe his shopping trip wasn't such a waste of time he thought it would be. He even manages to arrive at his apartment way before Shachi does, and has time to pack everything in the kitchen.

When Shachi arrives, he brings Penguin and too many pizza boxes with him. Law wants to complain, to tell him that they ate pizza yesterday too, but then both Penguin and Shachi almost punch him, stating Law had to tell them about Nami and Nojiko's existence, that it was his obligation has a friend. And that makes Law laugh, he laughs so hard with Shachi and Penguin running after him that it makes his face and belly hurt. And it's good, it's a good feeling.

The three of them end up sleeping in Law's living room, surrounded by empty pizza boxes and with the TV still on.

.

.

.

The next day, Penguin wakes him with a plate full of burned pancakes, but they're reasonable, the middle part at least, if he puts more syrup than the normal dose.

He goes with Shachi to Bell-mere's after, and Nami crosses her arms under her breasts and glares at them both when they open the door, the small bell tingling on top of their heads. Law didn't realize how much he missed that stupid thing until then.

"Good morning Nami!" Shachi kind of sings, his voice shrill and high pitched as usual. A few heads turn in their direction, then back at their food and coffee.

"You're late," she says, glaring at him, then at Law. "Again."

Shachi just grins, big and bright, as he makes his way around the counter, like a kid opening his Christmas presents. Law follows him, but then turns to Nami and orders coffee. The words feel foreign as they leave his mouth and he feels happy for the fact he helped the Bell-mere's open again. Nami watches as Shachi starts making his coffee, like a hawk watching his prey, waiting for him to screw up one way or another. But when he doesn't, she turns to Law again to take his money from his hand.

"How was the reopening?" Law asks her.

"Busy." She sounds tired, but the good kind of tired. The tired that tells him she had her hands full with work, not restless and stressed due to the hospital.

"That's good," he says and Nami just rolls her eyes dramatically, but there's a small smile playing on her lips and Shachi's watching them instead of focusing on the coffee machines in front of him. He hands Law his coffee with a jealous frown that makes Law almost laugh.

Law stays by the counter, leaning against it with his coffee between his hands. There's no one in line, so he guesses Nami doesn't mind if he stays that way, watching the customers, some with faces Law has become an acquaintance to and others that are new to him, watching as they readjust and include Bell-mere's back in their routines. Little do they know that Law has helped, little to they know they should be thanking him for the coffee they're drinking and for the chairs where they're seating.

He looks at his spot and his surprised to see it occupied by two girls surrounded by papers and looking stressed, and for the first time, he finds that he doesn't care. Maybe that's because he relates to them with both the stress and the papers accumulated, or maybe that's because he's in a good mood today. Whatever the case is, he finds it funny how they almost take their hair off their head, how they almost groan in frustration. He wonders if that's what he looks like.

"I'm considering put a couch or something on that corner," Nami says behind him. Law turns to look at her. "So that all your nerdy asses can get more comfortable."

That would be good, really good, and also strangely kind coming from her. "I doubt I would find an empty space on that couch to put my ass on though."

"Yeah, probably." Nami says, smiling. "I'll figure something out. After all, you are my favorite customer."

"I better be."

.

.

.

Law's having a good day, and there are rare times where he feels lucky, and today's one of those times. So he tries his luck at the hospital. But obviously, he doesn't get past the lobby. He doesn't really know why he thought he would get a card, to be honest, it's Sunday. Everyone comes visit their relatives and friends at the hospital on Sundays.

He feels like the woman in the reception is starting to take pity on him. Every time Law goes ask for a card, after spending an eternity in line, she's always the one that tells him there are no cards available. She must recognize his face by now.

He's on his way home when his phone rings, making everyone inside the bus beside him jump in surprise. Law's only mildly surprised when he sees Monet's name flashing on its screen, and only mildly surprised when she asks him if he wants to go and grab a pizza with her. As if this wouldn't be the third night in a row he eats pizza, as if Law likes pizza that much to eat it every day, as if he's not sick of it by now.

But he goes anyway, and they end up eating in a cozy and small restaurant that smells like fries and ketchup. And Law actually has a good time, considering Monet does most of the talking, but she's smart and talks about interesting things too, so he doesn't mind.

When they're finished, they leave together and decide to go and drive a bit around town, it being a bit late and most of the roads being almost deserted. Law doesn't own a car, but Monet does. A white and very ugly thing on the outside, but quite spacious on the inside as Law later found out when both of them climbed into the back seat.

* * *

 **Feel free to leave a PM ^^**

 ** _Remember to apologize, even if what you did wrong was unintentional. If you don't know how to, then learn. It's a horrible thing when someone recognizes that has made bad stuff and doesn't apologize for it. Always apologize for what you've done wrong, and make the apologizes count_.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey there guys, so first of all I want to apologize, not for the so long delay on posting this chapter but because I was intending on stopping writing this fic altogether, I just didn't have the excitement I had in the first chapters, I wasn't motivated for it and didn't like what I wrote. Yes, because I had until chapter 8 all written and saved in my computer, but they just seemed so off, so out of context that I just left them there.**

 **I had this idea before I started tipping, and it sounded good at the time, but now it doesn't anymore. I once read one should only write about what they already know, and I guess that's true, at least a bit.**

 **The mom of one of my best and dearest friends died more or less a month ago, and it was such a shock to everyone that knew him that is still hard to put into words. I had this concept of how I should write Law helping Luffy cope with everything in my mind, but I never experienced a death in the family - at least not in the family that's close to me- or in my group of friends, which I'm really glad. And this experience, my friend needing me and everyone around but at the same time pushing us away, my friend changing so much after his lost, made me realize my concept was totally wrong. I know everyone has a different way to cope with death, but my friend's way scared me in the beginning, because I was afraid of what he might've done.**

 **He's a lot better now.**

 **So my point is, I'm sorry for keeping this without an update for so long, I'm sorry I lost my motivation. I opened my account last week and saw so many reviews and new followers that I felt overwhelmed and guilty. When I was just a reader, I got angry every time I read a fic only to find it abandoned, and suddenly I became one of those writers.**

 **So this note is to tell you I'm not abandoning this fic, I'm not, no matter how long I take to update the next chapter. I remember when I stayed awake so many night reading fanfiction, I remember how it helped me getting distracted for a while when I was going through bad times. So, to everyone that's like the younger me, I'm not letting you down, just please have in consideration that this fic have some stuff that I related to, now more than ever, and that sometimes it is hard to find the right words.**

 **I'm actually glad I didn't post those chapters I still have saved in my computer, because now I can't grab this little baby of mine in a point where I still liked what I wrote and just let it flow.**

 **As for this chapter, it's a long one. I've been writing it all week, and I like it, it's such an improvement compared to the other one I wrote. It's long and slow paced, but I like it nevertheless, I love Law being a drama queen, I hope you do too.**

 **And without further rambling, I will let you read.**

* * *

A week passes by and Law barely notices it. He has met more people in those short seven days than in great part of his life. He has somehow made his way through Luffy's circle of friends, may it be while making smal talk to break the tension inside Luffy's room, or while waiting in the lobby for their turn and cards.

They're all so different, from each others and from him, and it's all so disconcerting that sometimes Law just wants to ran off. He feels out of place, so out of place it's hard to put in words. He has felt out of place before, who hasn't really, during parties where he didn't know anyone else other than Shachi and Penguin and when he ended up having a date with a random girl instead of one of a lunch with one of his friends. But nothing like this.

Law doesn't share the moments they share with Luffy, doesn't share their bonds and memories, doesn't share their pain and suffering because Law's not Luffy's friend and all his moments with him englobe the Bell-mere's, pastries, coffee and a lot of bad mood from Law's part and joy from Luffy's.

But Law's sad too, in a weird way he can't quite explain. He's not wandering around with blank face and puffy eyes, he doesn't sigh every two seconds, he doesn't stare into the void and circle around in the lobby, he doesn't sit with a whole group on the overly used plastic chairs to remember and share past memories or to try and make a plan of how the hell they will help Luffy cope with all this shit once he wakes up.

Law hears their stories and can't help but feel a bit jealous and sad, because when they ask him what he used to do with Luffy, he just responds he used to put food in front of him with a pun written on a piece of paper. Law hears their plans and can't help but think that none of the stuff they're saying would be in any way recomforting, but he doesn't know Luffy like they do, he doesn't know what he likes and dislikes, what makes him sad and what cheers him up.

He doesn't know shit.

But, God, he wants to help him too, he wants to help him so much it surprises him. He doesn't know if that's due to the fact he misses the joy Luffy used to irradiate and he's sick of seeing him laying in the same bed, day after day, breathing loudly through the ventilator and surrounded by machines and their noises. He doesn't know if that's due to the fact Luffy's friends want to help him is so contagious, he doesn't know if that's due the fact he's tired of seeing Shachi being behind the counter, using Luffy's uniform but not at all resembling him.

He has never felt as clueless has he feels now. He finds himself glaring at random people more often than not and for no reason at all, his throat gets tight whenever he hears Luffy's name and it just feels like a black cloud keeps following him around, blocking the sun and the colours of the spring that has finally bloomed.

He remembers the excitement he felt the first time he went visiting Luffy, remembers how he just had eyes to all the machines and the nurses and doctors walking around, too mesmerized by all the ambiance to even pay that much attention to Luffy who was the main reason why he was there in the first place, even if he keeps telling him he just went because of Nami and Nojiko.

He remembers how in the first days he wasn't really that worried about Luffy's condition, remembers that he thought he would wake up and recover in no time, that he thought the real problem would come after he woke up, after he discovered what happened to him and to his brother. He remembers thinking it would be the main problem and that, by the time that problem finally arrived, he would back off and let his friends help him. But now he feels stupid about his actions, feels bad.

As the days passed, Law stayed in the hospital, kept going visit Luffy and sometimes stayed in his room while he knew some of Luffy's friends were in the lobby, just waiting for a card, even though he promised himself that he would never take visiting time from one of Luffy's friends.

He stayed there and met his friends, heard their stories, conforted a few of them. Stayed there and didn't complain when they added him to their facebook's chat group, added him to their plans to help Luffy recover and to the schedule where everyone had a specific hour to come, just to not unnecessarily overcrowd the hospital's lobby and to make sure Luffy's bedroom had at least one person all the time, ready for when he woke up. Law didn't complain at all when all of them opened a gap in their circle for him to join them.

And sometimes he regrets ever accepting to make a part of their plans because, if he didn't, he wouldn't have the need to go to the hospital every day, wouldn't need to acknowledge the fact Luffy should've woken up days ago and still hasn't, wouldn't ever meet Zoro or Usopp, or Franky or Robin, or anyone else, wouldn't know Luffy's dog is under Usopp's care and that he whines everyday when he realizes Luffy isn't coming to bring him home with him for yet another day. Wouldn't know Luffy's brother was cremated and that his remains are just waiting for Luffy to wake up so he can throw them into the ocean, just like Ace apparently always rambled about wanting.

And Law starts feelling anxious more often than not whenever he looks at Luffy's unconscious body, because he thought he would've woken by now, but now he's afraid he never will. Or worse, that he wakes up and is not the Luffy everyone knows anymore.

Shachi keeps coming to his apartment, day after day, and Law doesn't mind it as much as he should because while shit happened around him, Shachi kept unaffected, even though he works with Nami and Nojiko. And him being around is such a breath of fresh air that he sometimes feels overwhelmed by Shachi's capacity to distract him with the most mundane things one can imagine.

One day he brought alcohol with him, bottles and bottles of beer and a few of vodka, stating that he was in the mood to get a bit light-headed and forget about college for a few hours. He asked if Law also wanted to participate, or if he only wanted to play the responsible part instead of the funny one. Law discorded, for him, being drunk is not at all funny, he loses his senses and his filter and starts rambling about whatever the hell comes to his mind, not minding if it was a secret or a very personal and embarrassing information about himself, and let's not forget the headaches and nausea that come after. But even so, Law abdicated of his usual responsable role and entered Shachi's fun, only to drink twice as him.

He doesn't remember most of the things he said, or most of the things he has done but, once he wakes up in the living room, his apartment seems to still be in one piece and he and Shachi end up eating a whole box of cereal. Whatever he may have said that could possibly embarrass him, or Shachi doesn't remember too or decided to not mention it.

Monet subtly invites him over one day after telling him she's alone in her house and with an inexplicable desire to watch a movie. He was just leaving the hospital, after Robin came to take his place. She tried to make small talk with him before he left the room, but her eyes and tone of voice are so disconcerting that Law's uncomfortable every time she just greets him.

Law's actually surprised he still remembers most of the way to her house and freak ass neighborhood. They end up not watching a movie at all.

.

.

.

It's wednesday late afternoon when Nami calls. Law was in the shower when he heard the phone ringing. He didn't think much about it at first, thought it was probably just Shachi asking if he could come and hang out, but when he left the bathroom, towel still around his waist, and saw Nami's name written across his phone's screen, his breath got caught in his throat. He returned the call right after, but it was her turn to not answer it. So he calls her again, and again, and again. But she doesn't answer any of his calls.

His breath his uneven and he can feel his heart hammering against his ribcage. His hair his still soaked and dripping drops into his phone's screen and onto his shoulders. Thoughts keep coming to his brain, bad thoughts, horrible thoughts until all he can think about his Luffy, Luffy, Luffy.

He goes to his room and grabs the first clothes he sees, leaving his apartment while in the process of putting his shirt on. And he sprints, oh he sprints, down the stairs because he couldn't bare to wait for the elevator, and on the street, maneuvering through the people coming towards him. He arrives at the Bell-mere's, tired and out of breath, but only Shachi's there, taking the order of a old man.

"Where's Nami?" Law asks, coming to the counter and making the old man jump a bit.

Shachi hands the customer his coffee. "Nami and Nojiko went to the hospital and left me here, all by myself, can you believe it? The pastries are running out and-"

"Why?" Law interrupts him. "Tell me why, Shachi."

"Because of Luffy, of course, he's awake or something. But what is wrong with you, Law? Are you feeling okay?-" Law hears him, until he doesn't anymore. Suddenly his ears don't catch the sound of the words coming out of Shachi's mouth _. Luffy's awake_ , it's all that crosses his mind, _he's awake._ And Law smiles until he's grinning, and he doesn't even know why.

Luffy's awake.

Suddenly he's not tired anymore and he runs out of the coffee shop with Shachi yelling "Don't go now, everyone is there!" at his back, and Law laughs, out loud and like a maniac, right in the middle of the street. Of course everyone's there, Luffy's awake, does Shachi even know how many people must be there, does he even know how many people must be smiling right now because of this? Does he even- no, he doesn't, he doesn't know anything about Luffy, he doesn't know shit, but that doesn't matter, because Luffy's awake now.

He catches a cab and soon enough he's heading towards the hospital. But it's a long way and the traffic is slow and it doesn't take that long for Law's brain to start to think and overthink. Nami called, once, and didn't answer his four calls. She told him to call her in case Luffy waked up in his turn, and he told her to do the same if it was in her turn. But it wasn't in her turn, because she was at Bell-mere's, so someone warned her too.

He tries to call her again, only for her not answering the fucking phone again, _maybe she left it in the car_ , his positive part of his brain tells him, but that's highly improbable. She always carries her phone around and even got more paranoid with always keeping it in hand reach after Luffy's accident. And the line isn't occupied, or the phone turned off, it just isn't answered.

He feels his smile dropping and his frown taking over as the bad though are back in full force.

Something happened, something bad.

Law then tries to imagine what happened. Luffy waking up must've terrified the person who has inside the bedroom with him, having to be the one explaining everything to him was one hell of a task, Law just hopes it was someone careful with the words. And after the explanation, Law doesn't even want to imagine. Luffy must've felt so disoriented, so out of place after waking up after weeks unconscious, surrounded by beeps and with a ventilator covering his mouth and nose and without a brother. Luffy must've felt so lost after hearing what happened.

He leaves the cab as soon as he's close enough to the hospital, not minding doing the rest of the way by foot. The happiness and excitement are gone and left a hole in his stomach, he doesn't sprint or run to the hospital, just walks, he's sure he won't like what he will see there.

Shachi was right, so right when he said everyone was in the hospital. It's even more people than what Law's has met and they're all gathered in the small green area just outside the lobby's main doors. Law sees the group from afar, a big group of people talking way too loudly, they're not that hard to recognize. He wonders if they were kicked out of the lobby, or if they decided to go outside voluntary.

He approaches them and sees as not even one face is smiling like he first thought they would be. They all look tense and scared.

It's not that hard to find a Nami and Nojiko. They both seem surprised to see him there.

"Why didn't you answered my calls?" Law asks Nami when all she does is look at him with her big eyes.

"I, hum. Sorry, my phone's lost somewhere inside my purse," she says, motioning to her big ass purse currently on the ground, the top of if leaning and touching her legs.

"What happened? Why is everyone here at-" Law starts, but is cut short when she starts dragging him by his arm and only stops when there's enough distance between them and the group for them to be able to talk properly.

So Nami starts explaining it all. Starts explaining how Zoro was the one that was inside Luffy's room when he started coming back to conscience and had to deal with the whole situation of being the carrier of the bad news. Law feels bad for Zoro, doing what the guy had to do was the only part Law wasn't at all looking forward to do after he starts working, telling the bad news to someone you don't know must be horrible, he can only imagine how it feels like if the someone is one of your best friends.

Law's glad it was Zoro, even though he doesn't really know the guy that well Law can easily see how strong his friendship with luffy is, he must've known how to approach the whole situation, Law hopes. But he's even gladder Zoro's a strong guy when Nami tells him Luffy had to be sedated right after he woke up and that if it wasn't for Zoro, the three nurses wouldn't be able to get a grip on Luffy by themselves and Luffy's wounds would've eventually open up. Law doesn't want to think what would've happened if Zoro wasn't there.

Law follows the finger Nami lifts after ending her explanation and sees Zoro at the end of it, sitting in one of the few wooden benches that small green area has, elbows on is knees and fingers tangled under his chin. He looks shocked and sweaty, his shirt is a mess with a few red stains on it.

He remembers Nami commenting one night, during a very long phone call, about the amount of time Zoro spent inside Luffy's room, even though she couldn't be that far behind. He remembers telling her to tell him just how unhealthy that was, and hoped she also took the hint for herself. At the time, Law didn't really care about Zoro's actions, he gave no shits about him, but it was hard to tell Nami to shut up, to stop rambling and monologuing about the mess all of their lives turned into. Now though, Law does feels genuinely bad for Zoro.

They approach the group again then, Nami redirecting towards her sister and Law going to sit next to Zoro. They don't say anything to each other, Zoro doesn't even glance at him or acknowledge his presence, in fact, the guy just comes out of his bubble when Robin comes with news, her being the one that stayed in the lobby for when the doctors came downstairs.

He tells them Luffy's okay, sedated but okay, and that he won't be receiving more visits until the next day. Some of Luffy's friends get exalted and start asking her question after question to which she has no answers to most of them. Law wants to slap them, punch them until he feels their noses breaking under his fist. They should be glad none of Luffy's wounds opened and not angry because they can't see him, that's selfish, so selfish.

Eventually, some start to say their goodbyes and walk away, and then it doesn't take long for the others to do the same. Nojiko asks if he wants a ride, which he accepts immediately. Her car is parked at the very end of the hospital's parking lot and she and her sister wave at their friends driving past them. Nojiko's car has even more carp than what he remembers it to have. He crawls to the backseat after letting Nami arranging all the papers and journals and maps lying around until he has a small place to seat.

Like he suspected, Nojiko doesn't drive as fast when Nami's seating beside her than what she does when alone. The ride home's quiet, too quiet for Law's liking, he can feel the tension and see Nami's frown reflected in the window's glass. But he doesn't say anything, only tells them he lives next to Bell-mere's and gives Nojiko directions when needed. He thanks them before stepping out of the car.

He takes his time getting to his apartment.

.

.

.

It's weird how as soon as Luffy's able to receive visitors, all the plans and schedules his friends made go completely forgotten. Now there isn't such thing as 'this hour is yours, next one is mine' now, and there isn't such thing as 'I'll warn everyone in the chat group if I'm in Luffy's room' either. Now it's everyone by themselves, and after the seventh time Law gets to the hospital and has no card to visit Luffy, no matter how long he waits in the lobby, he gets tired of it.

So he just quits going there altogether. He can see Luffy when he's back home or, if not, he can see him when he's back at Bell-mere's instead.

Until then, he has to deal with Shachi that really tries to be comprehensive and to cheer him up, for whatever reason, but only gets him more annoyed. He just drinks coffee and doesn't even look at the display and, eventually, he's not craving for sugar anymore and feels his weight dropping back to normal.

He never catches Nami behind the counter, and doesn't see Nojiko coming out of the kitchen with her pastries on hand, so Shachi's the one that sometimes tells him what's happening with Luffy. And even if the information isn't really that much, it's welcome nevertheless.

Nami made sure to tell Shachi he would be fired as soon as Luffy was ready to start working again, and he didn't make a drama out of it, mostly because Law had already warn him about the exact same fact even before Shachi got the job. But it would still take some time until Luffy's ready for that, so Nami likes to keep Shachi updated, and he doesn't mind to update Law too.

Shachi tells him over the week how Luffy's condition gets better and better, how Ace's death apparently sunk in and how he got transferred from the ICU to another room. Law wonders how he's dealing with it though, and that's something Shachi can't tell him. He wonders if Luffy likes all his friends around, all at the same time, being loud and occupying most of the chairs in the lobby. He wonders if Luffy likes all the ins and outs of his room and all the repetitive questions Law's sure his friends asked. He wonders if Luffy likes all that, he must appreciate knowing that many people care about him and are there whenever he needs, but he also must feel overwhelmed, suffocated with all that simultaneous support.

Law doesn't like to think about Luffy, it distracts him from his studies and gets him mad, and he doesn't have time for distractions, not with the finals just around the corner. So he studies, and studies and studies a bit more and the days pass by in a blur of letters and information and images of the inside of the human body. He goes to Bell-mere's and drinks three or four coffee in two hours because Shachi doesn't care how much caffeine Law puts inside his system, him being also too glued to his books to even fully notice Law's orders.

Law sits in his corner, surrounded by papers and books and occasionally his computer. Nami still hasn't put the couch there, like she said she would do for his nerdy ass, so Law has to sit in that freaking chair that starts to get uncomfortable if used for too long. But he doesn't mind, he doubts the thought of putting a couch in the corner of her coffee shop has even crossed Nami's brain.

Shachi comes and sits in front of him where there aren't any customers to be attended, and keeps silent and focused on the notes Law has laying around, as if trying to memorize everything in one go.

And it's okay, the thoughts about Luffy start getting fewer and fewer, mixed inside his brain along with all the things he needs to memorize if he wants to get over finals. And eventually, he stops thinking about him altogether, it's not like he could do anything for him, it's not like it's right for him to take the place beside Luffy of one of his friends, he reminds himself, although he takes him some time to really convince himself of that fact.

Of course, that is until he stops red hair behind the counter.

Law's not sure why, but the first thought that crosses his mind when he sees her is to turn away, to run back to where he came from and come again another time. But he doesn't, he steps forward and every time his feet touch the wooden floor his frown deepens.

"Hey there, Law," Nami greets him with a small smile. He notices the bags underneath her eyes, along with her lack of makeup. He has always seen her with flawless skin and long eyelashes, not with red spots here and there and with her eyes with nothing on them.

"Yeah, hey there Law!" Shachi greets him too, the counter in front of him with three opened books. He doesn't pay more attention than to Law.

Law nods at them both and let's Nami make his coffee before asking if she can join him for a moment. She looks around the coffee shop, a few people sat and reading the newspaper, others talking. No one comes in so she nods and goes around the counter.

"Tell me how he is," Law says as soon as he sits in his chair. She sits in front of him.

And she tells him and doesn't stop until a group of teenagers enter through the door, the bell tingling above the first one as he opens the door and holds it for his friends to enter, and then she's helping Shachi.

Luffy keeps getting better and better apparently, at least physically. She said he stopped being dizzy and disoriented due to all the medication, but that sometimes his chest hurt so much the doctors have to give him medication that makes him sleepy. Said that he started walking on the corridor too, back and forward, whenever he's feeling better and bored.

And said Luffy asked for him when he found Law have been there when he was unconscious.

His heart feels heavier inside his chest, and his ribcage doesn't seem to be large enough for his lungs to expand properly. He looks at Nami and Shachi, both busy attending annoying and indecisive teens, and he feels angry, with them but mostly with himself. And he doesn't know why.

He hates the fact he doesn't know why he's angry anymore, hates the fact he gets angry so easily nowadays. Luffy asked for him because Law was there when he was unconscious but isn't now that he's awake. Fucking hell.

He checks the time on his phone. He still has time, some time at least, if he counts how long it will take to get to the hospital. So he packs his things and leaves the Bell-mere's, his coffee half drank still on top of his table. He enters a cab and, this time, he doesn't let his mind think about what he's doing, about how he will get there and don't get past the lobby like the other seven times he tried to.

He goes because Luffy asked for him, and when one's in the hospital and asks for you, you shouldn't think twice before going, because it may as well be the last time you see them.

And it's so weird how he doesn't pay much attention to his surroundings as he makes his way to the hospital after he leaves the cab, it's weird how he already knows the way so well. It's weird how he enters and notices the lobby mostly empty, the visiting time almost over. It's weird how he approaches the receptionist and how she actually looks surprised she has a card to hand him instead of apologizing for not having one.

Luffy's room is in a different place now though, the post critical unit being on the second floor. Law takes the elevator and looks at the number in the card more times than what he needs to, as if he will suddenly forget about it after five seconds.

Finding Luffy's room is relatively easy, it's the third door on the right of a very long hallway. The room is not as white or noisy as the other one, doesn't have nearly half of the machines the other had, and neither does Luffy's attached to his body. He's laying on his side when Law steps inside the room, looking small and pale. There's another bed right next to Luffy's, but it's empty, the sheets folded at the end of it.

Law approaches him as silently as he can manage, trying to make the less echo with every step as possible. He's sleeping, his breath heavy.

Nami's words play over his mind, "sometimes his chest hurt so much the doctor gives him enough pills to give him an overdose, and then he's sleepy and only wakes up the next day. We prefer to leave him alone when that happens, let him sleep like he needs to."

 _That's why no one's here_ , Law thinks as he sits in the empty bed. Luffy's hair is a mess, Law notices, and needs a desperate comb too. It covers most of Luffy's face and his pillow and the blackness of it only makes him look paler. Law can see his cheekbones, salient; can see how the scar underneath his eye seems bigger and can see how thin he his just by looking at the arm he has on top of the covers, can see his veins, a mix of blue and purple. Luffy was never fat, he was slim and short but Law could see the muscles on his forearms as he made his coffees, could see the shape of the ones on his back whenever he turned around, could see his clavicles when he didn't button up his uniform all the way up. Now though, he seems like his muscles have been drained out of his body.

He looks around the room again then. There some balloons attached to the end of Luffy's bed saying 'get well soon', and comic books and a mp3 on top of the bedside table between the two beds. The other one his full of papers, all handwritten, and envelops with Luffy's name on them. Law suspects those are the letters everyone agreed in writing, to show Luffy their support and tell something personal, using references.

Law sighs. He didn't write anything, even though he was present when everyone agreed into writing them, he didn't object. But what would he say any way? He doesn't have a special thing with Luffy, a special handshake or internal joke, he doesn't have past references worked mentioning, nothing mo-

The puns. They have the puns. Law doesn't know if Luffy just uses them with everyone else but it was a pun and a waffle that started it all.

He feels ridiculous when he opens his backpack and takes out a pen and one of the big post-its he uses to write short and importance notes. It's not a yellow colored one like the ones Luffy used, it's light green but he guesses it doesn't matter what color the damn paper is.

At first he's not sure of what he should write, he doesn't use puns, but Shachi and Penguin have been coming up with new ones every so often and randomly during the day ever since they all went to have the hungover breakfast and Luffy decided to still give Law his yellow paper. But the ones they use are horrible, and Luffy's ones are about food, he's not using those.

Then he looks at Luffy's arm again, thin and pale, just like a bone.

A nurse comes not long after and tells Law it's time to go home, she gives him a small smile before leaving the room again. Law leaves right after, looking at the back of Luffy's head and at the post-it note now sticked to one of Luffy's comic books before doing so.

 ** _You're going tibia okay._**

 ** _._**

 ** _._**

 ** _._**

It's three in the morning when Shachi calls him, drunk and lost somewhere in the city. Law groans and calls a cab and is so exhausted he almost falls asleep again before they can answers the call. He puts on some pants and shoes and doesn't bother in changing the t-shirt. He makes the taxi driver drive around the city, following some midd sense directions, for at least one hour, looking for Shachi until he sees the guy, sat on a bench right beside the road. Law comes out of the cab and almost punches him because Shachi's so immature and reckless, but when he looks at him with big and lost eyes, Law doesn't do nothing more than help him climb in the cab's backseat.

The process is the same as always, he takes Shachi home with him so he can keep an eye on his sorry ass over the remaining few hours. He hates when Shachi acts like this, when he's so stupid and childish, but Law likes the feeling when he's helping him out of the cab and onto the elevator, when he's helping him enter his apartment and lay on the couch. He likes it when he's being useful, when he's needed. He likes to actually have an idea of what he's doing instead of just improvise and follow the flow like he's been doing lately. He likes it when he's being helpful to others while pushing his abilities further and further. He likes it when his friends rely on him, even if that happens at the most inconvenient times.

Shachi once told him he only felt that way because, deep down, he had a caretaker personality and that he couldn't control himself whenever there was a damsel in distress, which is ridiculous. He doesn't like helping other just for the sake of helping others, Law's not like that, he's selfish. He likes to help other because he likes even more the feeling of power that comes with it, the power over someone's life. Knowing that someone's depending on them, owning him one, makes him feel a lot more alive himself.

But, the next morning, by the time he has to wake Shachi up so they can go and eat breakfast at the Bell-mere's and for him to not be late to work, Law feels weird and empty all over again and not one slight bit powerful. The food his delicious as always, but Shachi barely touches it. Nami's behind the counter and gives Shachi a small lecture before deciding he's already suffering too much due to his own stupidity. Even Nojiko comes out of the kitchen to mock him about his night habits until she's forced to go back inside.

Law goes and takes the plates and the mugs to the counter, leaving Shachi sat and with his fists rubbing his red and watery eyes. Nami stops him before he has time to back and raises her phone, right in front of his face. _Tell him thank you_ , it's all the message on her phone's screen says. It doesn't mention Law's name or what he did to be thanked for, but somehow Nami figured out if was for him.

"I don't know what you did, but keep doing it," she tells him before grabbing the dirty plates and mugs and taking them to the kitchen.

Law let out a little laugh before he goes get Shachi, who can't even stand on his own feet properly. He has the Saturday out due to how miserably his state is.

He takes him back to his apartment, stumbling through the street. Shachi's car is still somewhere in the city, but none of them is in the mood to go search for it. It can be handled later on or even next day.

Shachi goes straight to Law's bedroom as soon as he unlocks the front door, closing the blinds until the room gets as dark as it can possible get at that hour of the day. Law knows Shachi's intending on sleeping on his bed, but he can't bring himself to care. He doesn't know what happened in whatever party Shachi was involved, he still hasn't told him and Law doesn't feel like it's time to start asking questions. It must've been something new though, something Shachi wasn't prepared for if the fact he called Law, lost and scared is anything to go by.

He knows Shachi won't repeat it, whatever it was.

The idea of sleeping then sounds so appealing and so tempting for Law, just go inside his dark bedroom and lie on the bed beside Shachi. Stay there and just wake up the next morning, it sounds so good. He doesn't even care that Shachi would most likely get all touchy and hug him like he's some sort of pillow somewhere after he's fast asleep. They could easily forget about it, pretending it didn't happen once they both wake up. It wouldn't be uncomfortable, neither or them would have the enough energy to be uncomfortable with one another really, at least not with the bad mood both of them have.

So that's what Law does, he enters his bedroom and lays next to Shachi. It doesn't take long for his eyes to adjust to the darkness and, eventually, he can see the contour of Shachi's face, his eyes shiny and looking straight at him.

"I know I'm responsible and all, but the responsibility doesn't get along with my wallet that well, Shachi," Law tells him and it's truth, all the times he has to rely on a cab it costs him a painfully big amount of money.

"I'm sorry, Law, I won't do that again," Shachi says, his voice low and rough.

"You better don't."

The days pass and Law doesn't do much. His spring break starts and he manages his time between his apartment and the Bell-mere's.

Nami calls every night and does a monologue that lasts for at least an hour each time. She talks about Luffy, about her concerns once it's okay for him to leave the hospital and go back home. Talks about how she's scared about what Luffy may do, because Ace's bedroom will be right there, along with all his things and all the memories. She tells him she knows how strong Luffy is, but how he tends to neglect himself, how he tends to not really care and talk to his friends about what he's feeling. And Law can't quite blame him, he gets annoyed when Shachi and Penguin keep mocking him, telling him to sleep and sometimes to eat and to get out and interact with people, especially during the finals week or similar stressing periods of time. Law can only imagine what it would be like if he had a whole group of friends doing the same.

And eventually Luffy leaves the hospital, and Nami's fears take place.

"I had a fight with Luffy," she tells him one night and it doesn't surprise him, with all their talking Law noticed pretty fast how Luffy was starting to get under everyone's nerves, or would only be a matter of time before the discussions started to take place. It's like Luffy's is trying to push everyone back, trying to get some personal space now that he's at home and has a door he can close and block out the world, but his friends keep refusing and clinging even more onto him.

They only talk for half a hour that night, but he feels like the phone call lasted way longer. Nami ends up relieving all his frustration and stress on him in one go, and Law's so glad they're are on opposite sides of a phone call, otherwise he would most likely receive a few punches, even if her anger is not directed to him.

He doesn't know why Nami chose him to unburden from all people. He never gave her advices or told her comfort and supporting words, he just heard her rambling non stop, nothing more. And maybe that's only what she needed, a person whom she could spill all her worries and that wouldn't interfere with her anger, call her out on that. Maybe she just needed a person that would hear her. Or maybe she just needed a person, someone, anyone. Maybe she didn't need those advices or supporting words, maybe she has had enough of them already. And maybe she just needed someone out of Luffy's circle of friends to whom she could just ramble about how mad she is about Luffy's attitudes, just how sad she is with everything that happened to him, just how useless she feels for not being able to help him properly. Maybe she just needed someone who would hear without criticizing her.

So that's what Law's gives her every night. He gives her his full attention and silence and let's her spill everything out. Because that's all he can giver her.

"Have you tried going to his house?" Law asked one night, just so Nami could catch her breath.

"I have," she told him after a while, her voice low. "But he never opens the door when he realizes it's me. I know he's inside, he just never lets me in."

He wish he could give her some sort of advice, but he doubts telling her to force her way in next time Luffy doesn't answer her calls and doesn't open his door, or that next time she should go for the window and forget about the door altogether is going to help much. Luffy could live at the very top of a very high building for all he knows. So Law keeps his mouth shut and goes to sleep after she ends the call.

.

.

.

The next day, it's eleven in the morning when Law wakes up. There is the alert of three new texts showing on his phone's screen, forgotten all night on the couch. Two from Nami and one from Penguin. He sees Penguin's one first.

 _Where you at,_ received at 10:41. It's all it says and Law sends a simple 'home' in return.

The response comes two seconds later, because Penguin is always glued to his phone. He tells Law lunch is on him, and that Shachi and Jean will pop up at midday too, _a small retribution for you responsible friendship_ , Penguin sends. Law lets out a smile.

He sees Nami's text next, and he's only mildly surprised to see an address with a, _in case you want to take a shot_ , received at 23:06. Law doesn't need to be a genius to know to whom that addresses belongs to. Law tells himself that it's not important, it's just Nami being Nami, it's just her trying to put someone inside Luffy's home to see if the guy's still breathing.

He understands what's she's doing, he really does, he just doesn't know why she thinks he's going to be luckier than her, luckier that everyone else. Why she thinks Luffy's going to open the door for him and not ignore him like he apparently is doing with everyone. Why she thinks Luffy's going to be home the moment Law decides to go there, and it's not like Law has his number to call him and check if he's home. And even if he did, why would Luffy answer his call and not his friends'.

 _But he could open,_ a voice at the back of his head tells him, _he may not ignore you_.

And he feels stupid. So stupid. He goes take a shower, to clean his mind from it's stupidity and the sleepiness making his head feel too heavy for his neck, he hates oversleeping, it doesn't do him any good. He stays under the shower stall way more time than what he needs to and only leaves when the water starts running cold.

 _I wrote him a pun_ , the idea suddenly comes to his mind as he looks to his soaked figure in the bathroom's mirror, _what the hell was I thinking. Tibia, fuck tibia and fuck fibula and fuck femur and fuck every bone in the legs._

He gets a out of the shower and puts on some clothes. He waits for Shachi and Penguin to arrive while watching TV, changing the channel every so often. They didn't even need to send him a text warning him of their arrival, he can hear them coming up the stairs, laughing loudly and with heavy steps. Jean comes with them too.

Soon enough, Law's apartment smells like Indian food, as Shachi and Penguin put the plastic bags on top of the dinner table and start taking out container after container. It's a good meal, all of them gathered around, eating like there's no tomorrow. They talk about nothing and everything at all once and it's so weird how his mind gets so easily distracted, it's so weird how suddenly he feels like nothing's wrong.

But when all of them leave, in the middle of the afternoon, he feels dead tired all over again. He doesn't feel like studying, nor does he feel like going to Bell-mere's. So he just sits in his couch and watches movies, pointless and cliché.

He gets bored, so beyond bored he feels like he's going to die while yawning or sighing. He grabs his phone instead of the TV controller, and suddenly Nami's text crosses his mind, Luffy's address.

He needs to give it a shot, otherwise his mind won't stop mocking him about it. And once he fails, once Luffy doesn't even open the door, he can put the whole situation beyond his back because no one can say he didn't try.

* * *

 **Sorry if you had to read the whole thing again. I promise Luffy in the next chapter**

 **Feel free to leave a PM**

 ** _Remember to enjoy yourself, have fun, set free the wildness within yourself whenever the occasion calls. Forget to try to impress or try to catch anyone's attention all the time._**


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey there,**

 **So, I'm currently trying to survive two weeks of exams, and it's actually working pretty well so far. Anyway, my philosophy teacher said we shouldn't study in the hours before the exam, or even in the day before, because we had a full week to study. Study in the eve will only increase the stress, she said, which I think it's true, it's in the hours before the exam/test that we realize we don't know shit after all. She made me promise I would put all my resumes aside, because she knows how nerve-wracking I am, so that's what I did. I had my philosophy exam today's afternoon, and yesterday was spent writing this chapter and this morning revising it, hope you like it as much as I do.**

 **So after exams end, I'm officially on summer holidays, yey. I will be working though, as a tourist guide if the plans go as planned, I hope they do. But, either way, I will have a lot more free time so I will try to use it to write.**

 **Oh, and this just beat chapter 5 in length, it's a small monster.**

 **Also, Luffy's back, just as I promised, and you'll have plenty of him in the next chapters too, don't worry.**

 **I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

* * *

It's weird how dubious the driving skills of a taxi driver can be, how he can do the curves with way too much speed and don't hit the other cars.

Law tries to memorize his surrounding, tries to identify where exactly in the town he's right now. But it's too hard, especially when the driver keeps choosing dubious alleys to stay away from the traffic of the main road.

One thing Law realized pretty quickly once he put Luffy's address on Google Maps, is that the guy lives only on the other side of the town. Law sighed when he saw the distance and the time separating them and estimated the price it would cost him.

Only a small fortune.

Law leaves his neighborhood and the part of the town he knows by the palm of his hand by now, crosses the town's center, and, soon enough, he's in a foreign land where he has never put a foot on. The buildings are bigger than where Law lives, a difference of six or so floors, and they're strange looking, all similar in architecture but with different colors. There are also more trees, growing alongside with the road, and more parks, even though they're way smaller than the only one Law's neighborhood has to offer.

Graffities cover most of the walls near to the pavement, but there are some in big scale that cover most of a whole side of a building too. They're not the badly made ones, they were obviously done by professionals, not amateur vandals. The sea is portrayed in most of them, like a huge painting separated in dozens of tinier ones that are different in style but still connect with each other.

Law watches them as he passes by, stopping at every single red light available because the taxi driver doesn't know about speed limits.

He sees the forest, green and pure, just outside the town when the buildings start getting smaller and, soon enough, the taxi driver is kicking him out and draining most of the money inside his wallet. The street as a good vibe, it's clean, doesn't have too many people rushing past him.

Law doesn't take long finding Luffy's building. It's a light yellow colored complex shaped like the half of the moon, heightening five floors above the ground. In the middle, a parking lot with a few small and young trees is mostly empty. A butcher with a big and old sign, a hairdresser, a small convenient store, and laundromat occupy the ground level floors, but there are more, a whole community that Law's sure can managed to do everything without needing to get out of the neighborhood.

 _No wonder he doesn't want to leave the house, he has everything here_ , Law thinks as he enters the enclosure. He feels like someone's watching him, and he feels uncomfortable without really knowing why. There's no one on the street aside from him, but he can hear the hum of the hair dryers of the hairdresser and the strong and loud stabs coming from the butcher.

Law called Nami before catching the taxi because he's not stupid enough to come to Luffy's address without really knowing where the guy lives. She told him he first had to get past one of the four ground level doors to get inside the building, the B being the one that led to Luffy's apartment, and that Luffy lived on the first floor, the door on the left.

He didn't want to, but he needed that crucial information. He didn't want Nami to know he was giving it a shot, like she said he should, he didn't want her to know he was unsuccessful. If she didn't know, Law could've easily pretend nothing happened, pretend he wasn't reckless and stupid, pretend he didn't even receive her text. But now he can't, he will have to live with his failure for the rest of his life.

He approaches the B door, a big red thing with a dirty glass that reaches the top and a handle and a door lock too low, even for someone has small as Luffy. He presses the button saying 1-L and it makes a high pitched noise. Law sees how that button is, by far, the most worn out of them all, due to the amount out times he has been used.

Law waits and presses it again, waits and presses yet another time, and another, and another. But there's no Luffy talking through the inter-communicator, asking who the fuck is so impatient, and there's no sound of a door lock opening beside him either.

He contemplates the idea of pressing the other buttons, bother the other people living in the building until one of them lets him in. He could also use the old trick of "Hello dear neighbor, I forgot my keys, could you help me with the door so I can enter the building. I know you never heard of me but I truly live here". But he quickly puts that idea aside, he wonders how many times Luffy's friends tried to do that already, just to not mention how ridiculous it sounds.

He looks through the door's glass, trying to take a sneak peak through the dusty and dirty glass, but can't see much, just stairs in front and what appears to be the elevator on the left wall, badly illuminated.

Law wonders if he should go home, give up on his stupidity and just tell Nami there's nothing he can do.

The answers comes to him, like it always does nowadays. He didn't even turn around fully, to walk away and pretend nothing happened, when he heard something, the sound of a door, closing with way too much force, echoing down the stairs. He approaches the door again, tries to look inside, still nothing but darkness, but he hears the elevator coming down even before he gets to the ground level

Law's doesn't know what crossed his mind when he grabbed his own apartment keys from his jeans pocket, attracted to all the keys he owns, even the ones that aren't used anymore because he can't remember to throw them away. He doesn't know why he thought pretending to be having a hard time finding the right one to open the door was a good idea. He was so bent down he felt his spine complaining.

Law doesn't know what crossed his mind when a pink-haired woman, not much older than Law himself, opens the door and stands there, looking at him, and Law just says thanks, pretending she just saved him an eternity of trying to find the right key. She doesn't give him more than one quick and pointed look, between his face and the key bundle on his hands, before she passes right past him and barely even leaves enough time for Law to hold the door open.

She doesn't say anything, doesn't even ask his name or which apartment is his just to, you know, see if Law was lying about implying he lives in the building or not. Law hopes Luffy's neighbors aren't all like that, but he's actually glad this one was.

He manages to get in and it's so weird how his heart is hammering inside his ribcage, how his brain is suddenly completely focused, completely awake, as if a sudden wave of adrenaline just hit him. He doesn't have a reason to be like that, he just managed to get inside Luffy's building with nothing more than bad acting.

Law passes by the elevator and starts going up the stairs instead, he's not lazy enough to take the elevator just to get to the first floor. With every step he takes, the realization of what he's doing crosses his mind like it hasn't before, and the more he thinks about the whole situation, the more ridiculous it sounds.

Luffy doesn't know Law's there, doesn't suspect a thing because he decided to enter in incognito mode and without being invited. Sure, it will be hard for Luffy to just ignore him when he's not even expecting Law to be there but, what exactly will Law tell him if he opens the door? What reason does Law have to just be there, knocking on his door?

He hasn't thought this through, he hasn't made a plan. Law always has a plan.

His legs get him to the top of the stairs sooner than what he wanted, he didn't have enough time to organize the thoughts inside his head, to try and slow down his heart and lungs before they broke his ribs.

Law looks at the door on his left, Luffy's. It's just a normal door, made out of dark wood. He rings the bell and notices how sweaty his palms are. He cleans them on his jeans before he decides to knock on the door instead. He knocks once, twice but nothing happens and he can't hear any sound coming from the other side. Luffy could be out for all he knows, or he could be standing inches apart from Law, looking at him and deciding he's going to ignore him too.

Law stops knocking and starts focusing on the sounds, using his inexplicably hyper-aware senses, but he doesn't hear anything, and neither can he feel Luffy on the other side of the door, looking at him.

So Law starts banging, with closed fists, just like he did when Bell-mere's was closed. If Luffy doesn't open up, one of his neighbors will, and he will only get out after seeing someone. A dog starts barking inside Luffy's apartment and scratching the door when Law starts banging harder. He can hear rushed hisses in the background too, telling the dog to shut up.

"I know you're there, Luffy. Open up," Law calls, and suddenly the dog goes quiet and the door in front of him opens. And Luffy just stands there, awkwardly, holding the door open with one hand the collar of his dog with the other. His eyes are bigger than what Law remembers, brown and salient of his bony and pale face.

He looks horrible.

Luffy doesn't say anything, and neither does Law. He just makes his way inside Luffy's apartment, breaking into his comfort and isolated zone without even being invited. Luffy's dog doesn't make a move to attract him for trespassing his territory, just stands there next to Luffy, a small and fluffy brown animal.

Law doesn't like how he's been doing things lately, doesn't like the fact he has been forcing his way in by banging on doors. He has managed to get inside the Bell-mere's when the place was closed just by banging with force enough, and he has managed the exact same thing now.

What does that say about him? And what does that say about the other people, the ones that didn't manage what he did? Does that mean they didn't try hard enough, or that Law's overly persistent?

The first thing Law notices, when he enters Luffy's apartment, is the darkness of the place, along with a weird smell of mold and sweat. He goes to the living room's windows and opens them all, the light blue curtains fluttering as the wind enters, filling the place with sunlight, fresh air and the smell of the spring. Law can't imagine Luffy staying closed here, surrounded by mess and darkness, it's just not at all what Law imagined his place to be. He always thought Luffy's home would have a lot of colors and random things lying around, full of happiness and life. And maybe that's what it looked like before, but now the colors are gone, and so are the happiness and the life.

Law turns around. Luffy's still in the same position, just crouched next to his dog, looking like a confused mess. Law sees the oversized black t-shirt he's using, it makes him look smaller and paler. Chopper, the dog's name if Law remembers right, keeps looking at him, just like his owner, with big and brown eyes as well. Then he sniffs the air and looks behind, to the open door behind.

"Come on," Law says before he has time to think otherwise, his mind's blank and he can't form proper thoughts, but he needs to get Luffy and his dog out there, that's all he knows. "Let's go walk Chopper," he quickly adds when Luffy lools like he's about to refuse, or to form some sort of excuse not to go.

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Law ends up waiting while Luffy goes look for Chopper's leash and then he follows them down the stairs and down the street, passing by all the graffities and all the goddamn trees without a word. Law only notices they're heading towards the forest when the buildings suddenly disappear and the green takes place. He keeps his eyes on the back of Luffy's head, on his wild and unkept hair, on the straw hat hanging on his neck. He knows that hat, everytime Law was in Bell-mere's, the damn thing had to be somewhere on top of the counter and, at the hospital, it was on the bedside table. Only then he notices how old it must be, how old the straw looks and how it isn't really that tangled anymore at the end, the edge not having that round look it should.

The forest ends up being more a park than an actual forest. There's a long pathway, made of a mixture of flat rocks, gray and reddish-brown. Green herbs grow between the cracks and small shrubs on the edges of the path. On the trees, the green of the leaves gets mingled with the pink and yellow from the flowers flourishing on them.

Luffy lets Chopper walk freely when the buildings and the road are long gone, hidden behind the trees. Luffy doesn't ask how Law entered his building, or how he even knew where he lives to begin with so, in return, Law doesn't ask how's doing, or how he's feeling. Law guesses it's a fair trade.

Law watches as Chopper starts running after another dog, way bigger than him, and stops everytime he gets far away from them, looks back at Luffy to see if he's still there, and then starts heading back. Then is the other dog's turn to follow Chopper. Luffy tugs at his arm and points to a small kid's playground, and then he starts heading to the swings, now abandoned after two very energetic little girls are forced to leave after their mother receives a call. She looks stressed and with not that much patience for her kids, if they're even hers.

They're alone in the park, even the other dog suddenly disappears. Law sits in the swing beside the one Luffy's using, and it's so small his knees almost touch the ground and he swears it will break with his weight. But it doesn't, only lets out creaks every time Law moves.

He can hear Luffy's breathing beside him, but he doesn't say anything. Law normally doesn't mind silence, actually prefers it over a stupid and pointless conversation that don't lead to anything, but there's something in this silence that gets him a bit anxious. It's not an uncomfortable one, it's just a weird one. One where he can't find any words to fill, one where Luffy seems like he doesn't even care if Law talks or not, and that's what's messing with Law the most.

After a few sniffs on everything the playground can offer, Chopper comes and lies between them, his chest contracting and expanding frenetically, his tongue hanging out like he has just run a marathon. Law leans to his right so he can rest his hand on Chopper's belly and gently stroke it.

He can feel Luffy's eyes on him when he slides down and sits on the ground next to Chopper that seems to appreciate his new position and comes close to his side, melting under Law's touch and smelling his hand when it comes close to his nose. It's cute to see.

"How did you know Chopper's name?" Luffy asks, surprising Law with that low voice he almost didn't hear. Law suppresses a smile, he shouldn't even know about Chopper's existence yet there he is, petting the dog like he knows him for ages.

"I may have overheard a few conversations," Law says and is a bit ashamed after admitting it out loud. He shoved all the information he managed to get from Luffy and Nami's conversation at Bell-mere's, deep down inside his brain and he actually did his best to not hear them talking, but he's not deaf and, apparently, he didn't shove it deep down enough.

Luffy huffs in response and it sounds like an amused kind of huff, but when Law looks up at him, his expression hasn't changed one slight bit. He's staring at Chopper, at Law's hand as he pets the dog behind his ears and under his collar, where the fur is thicker.

The sky above them gets darker and darker, and the lamps of the park start to get illuminated. The air gets colder and, even though Law isn't affected by it, he still sees how it glues the front of Luffy's shirt to his chest and makes it flutter at his back, sees how he starts to shiver. Luffy doesn't say a word to complain, but Law knows it's time to take him home. They've made enough for the day, Luffy has left his apartment for an hour and took a breath of fresh air for the first time in only God knows how long. Chopper has relieved all his energy and seems ready to take a nap right there on Law's tight.

Sure they haven't said mostly anything, at least not anything important. But Law knows they will get there, if Luffy wants to. It's just an amount of time, an amount of patience and silent support. And they will have more chances, Law's sure.

They walk back to Luffy's building, only this time, they walk side by side, with Chopper walking slowly on Luffy's side, instead of them walking fast paced at the front and Law following behind. They reach Luffy's building sooner than what Law expected, and Luffy takes a while to find the right key. He holds the door, letting Chopper enter, and then stands there awkwardly, as if debating if he should invite Law or not.

Law finds the similarity of the whole situation with the one he experienced a few time ago with the pink haired woman kind of amusing. Only this time, Law doesn't need to pretend he lives there, and neither does he enter, but Law doesn't mind.

"Thanks," Luffy says instead and it's so weird how that little word can have so many possible meanings. Thanks for coming visit me, thanks for forcing your way into my apartment and for opening my windows, thanks for giving me a reason to leave my apartment, thanks for forcing me to walk Chopper. Thanks for not asking anything. Thanks for not offering your help out loud. Thanks for not saying that everything is going to be okay. Thanks for not saying that I look better.

"No problem," Law says and they both stand there, waiting for the other to say something. Law wonders if he should ask Luffy for his number, or if maybe he should just give him his. But he decides against it, he didn't need Luffy's number to find and make his way towards him, so it wouldn't make that much of a difference. He knows where he lives now and he can use that bad acting technique if he needs to, so they can exchange numbers later, when it's less awkward between them.

"Meet me here tomorrow," Law says, and sounds more like a warning, with a tone that one can't just say no. It's not an invitation, it's something that will happen whether Luffy wants it or not, whether Law wants it or not. Luffy nods in response and then Law's facing a closed door while hearing footsteps going up the stairs.

It's only when Law's already inside a taxi, and half way through the city, that he notices his phone has run out of battery. The taxi driver tells him it's almost eight and when he arrives at his neighborhood, he sees Penguin and Shachi, sat in front of his building's door and surrounded by plastic bags. When they see him approach, Shachi frowns and Penguin just crosses his arms in front of his chest.

"Where have you been?" Shachi asks. "We were about to leave."

"And why didn't you then?" Law mutters, ignoring the question. Shachi's frown deepens.

"Who would bring you dinner if not us?"

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The next day Law wakes up with Nami calling and he ignores her. Instead, he leaves his way too comfortable bed to go to the bathroom and take a well-deserved shower. When he gets out, his phone flashes and rings with a third call. Law doesn't want to talk to Nami, doesn't want to tell her that he has seen Luffy yesterday when she can't even manage to make him answer her calls; doesn't want to tell her that he entered Luffy's apartment and made him go outside when she can't even make him open the door for her to enter his building. He doesn't want to tell her, and, at the same time, doesn't want to lie to her either.

So he ignores her calls and that's actually kind of funny, considering it all started with Luffy ignoring her and now Law has also decided to do the same. Law feels bad for her, but he also understands Luffy's side. Luffy doesn't want to lie to Nami while telling her he's better, and doesn't want her to see him and realize he has lied. So he thinks the best option is to ignore her, just like Law's doing. It's not the best option, Law's aware of that, and he knows Luffy's is aware too, but that is just the easier one.

It may be selfish, it may be self-destructive in Luffy's case, but it sure as hell is a lot easier to ignore the problems instead of facing them. Because that's what the human being does best, ignore the problems until they can't be ignored anymore, pretend not to see them, close the eyes or just turn around and face the other way.

Law knows Nami would ask him if he has had any luck in taking a sneak peak of Luffy, because that's really all they have to talk about, it's _all_ they talk about. But Law doesn't want to, doesn't want to tell her he managed to enter Luffy's building, tell her he managed to get Luffy out, tell her how he looks like a skeleton, pale and skinny; he just doesn't want to tell her any of that. Because that happened between him and Luffy.

And he wants to keep it a secret, because Law has seen Luffy's friend's chat group, has seen how they all share the little bits of information they know with everyone. Has seen how everyone seems to know everything, and Law knows how wrong that feels, how bad he felt with himself after reading thousands of messages that got accumulated over the time he didn't check the group. That's the main reason why he removed himself from it, even though he told Nami it was just because there wasn't a point for him to be there when Luffy already left the hospital.

If Law tells Nami what happened yesterday, she would almost instantaneously tell everyone in the group. But he can't lie to her either, Law doesn't know what she already knows, Luffy could have told her everything already, or not. If Nami caught him lying, she would hardly trust him again and he can't lose her trust, he just can't, because even though he isn't a viable source of information for her, she's still a viable source to him. And if he loses her trust, he loses important things about Luffy.

Law decides to keep ignoring her until he has a better solution.

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As promised, Law is in front of Luffy's building's door by the time the clock on his phone tells him it's half past four. He thought about coming later, at the same hour as yesterday, but he decided against it, he wasn't doing anything at home anyway.

He stands in front of Luffy's door, staring at the buttons on his side. Law hits Luffy's button with probably more force than what was necessary because, apparently, he can't even control his own force when it comes to hitting buttons. His palms are sweaty again.

Law presses the button three more times, just for Luffy to get a hint it's him, and then goes sit on a nearby wooden bench that's full of dried bird poop. He tries to sit on the edge and does his best to not move an inch. He waits for at least ten minutes before he hears a heavy door opening, and then there's a small dog jumping onto him, making Law even more unstable on his position.

"Hey," Luffy greets him, his voice rough. He's making eye contact with Law, that's a progress, yesterday he didn't. But Luffy has weird eyes, still has after everything, sometimes it's hard to look away from them and to keep track on the conversation, Law has experienced that quite a few times at the Bell-mere's.

Law nods at him. Chopper starts licking his palm then, his wet and hot tongue feels weird against his skin and he fights the urge to take his hand away from the dog's reach, but it doesn't last long though, only a few licks and sniffs and Chopper's quickly positioned beside Luffy once more.

Law stands up. "Let's go then," he says as he starts walking, Luffy and Chopper following closely behind him.

They end up not doing anything, just like yesterday. They seat in the swings, however, this time, they take the empty seats from a few kids, which earn them a few glares from the moms. Chopper plays with the other dogs longer this time, only coming a few times to sniff at Luffy's hand and maybe glare a bit at Law as if demanding him to fucking do something about its owner's mood, and then he's gone, back to where he was before.

The park has a lot more people than yesterday, not only in the amount of the kids at the playground and dogs running around, but other people too. People jogging like they're on a TV commercial, perfect hair and perfect tight clothes; and others not so glamorous, soaked in sweat and barely raising their feet from the ground for another step. Elderly people occupying most of the benches, talking slowly with each other or reading their journals; and younger people, on dates or just meeting with their friends.

Law prefers the empty park, way more. The people annoy him, the noise and their smell annoy him. It's not that he hates people, it's more that he hates what comes associated with people. Yesterday when no one was around, he could hear the birds and the wind passing through the trees; he could smell the dirt and the purified air and he could see and feel just a beautiful and relaxing scenery. Now though, all he hears are the kids screams and fast paced footsteps, all he can smell are mothers' horrible perfume and the vanilla ice cream that was melting on the ground not far from the swings; and he can see and feel are the glares of the moms, their whispers, everything, just because he and Luffy are occupying a really good source of happiness from their kids.

Thanks to the Lord though, the swings area is actually far away from the rest of the playground, probably for the fact most kids like to jump off of it in the mid air while the others are playing and running just in front of their trajectory.

Law pays attention to the dogs then, already too tired of trying to lip read what the moms were saying, they were probably just being mean and noisy. He likes dogs, or better, he tolerates them. He actually wanted to have one himself for years now, but never did anything about it other than wanting. He guesses that's because he wouldn't provide a good environment to the poor dog. He's never at home and surely doesn't have enough time to regularly go for walks, he may have more than enough time now, but the spring break won't last forever. And the food issue, he can't afford another mouth to fill every day, God knows how his wallet has been stretching like a fucking contortionist with only himself to feed with regular meals and coffee and pastries, let alone feed a dog to keep healthy at the same time.

And let's not forget that he's talking about a dog, an alive being that needs everything that alive beings need. How the hell could he keep a dog healthy and well trained, he's not good at... that. There's no way he could take care of a dog properly, the poor thing would just be an unhappy dog, and there's no way the dog would like him either. He's just as good with animals as he is with people, which is saying is not good at all. Chopper may appear to like him, but Law knows that's just because he would he stuck in Luffy's apartment if it wasn't for him.

"You look off," Luffy says beside him, his swing rocking slightly. "What are you thinking about?"

"Nothing- I mean, about dogs, nothing important," Law tells him and receives a skeptical look in response, yeah, it sounds crazy to Law's own ears as the words leave his mouth too. "I'm serious, I've always wanted a dog to keep me company, I was just thinking about the reasons why I couldn't take care of one, I guess."

"I think you would be a good owner. It's not that difficult anyway, if I can't take care of Chopper you can take care of one too." Luffy tells him and, as if knowing they were talking about him, Chopper appears, out of nowhere, his tongue hanging out of his mouth and panting furiously. He jumps onto the top of Luffy's legs and makes Luffy hold tightly on the swing ropes in an attempt to get some stability.

"I will have to disagree with you," Law says and the conversation ends there. He waits for Luffy to disagree with him, to start saying that yes, he would be a good owner again; to start declaring argument after argument about how taking care of a dog isn't that difficult, how Law would be more than capable enough. But Luffy stays silent, and Law can't help but feel a bit disappointed.

They stay on the swings a bit more before Luffy stands up and makes Chopper jump onto the ground in the process. He doesn't need to tell Law that it's time to go.

The sun is still shining, although the sky's getting darker each second that passes. The day was what could be described as unusually hot, considering the time of the year, the spring finally hitting hard, and the unusually high temperature is still on the air.

Law's sweaty, can feel the sweat running down on his temples as he makes his way back to Luffy's building. He has to raise his arm to clean his forehead more times than what he wanted. His sweater's weird against his back and Law's starting to lose his nerve with the itch. He guesses it was a bad choice of his part to bring such a warm sweater, but it's not like he could predict the weather, not when it just keeps getting more and more unpredictable.

And so, there he is, sweating so unbelievable hard that he feels like he just got out of a pool and decided to walk on the street. He should have brought fresher clothes, lighter clothes, just other clothes. He wished he brought shorts and a loose t-shirt like Luffy did instead of his way too warm ones, he wished he brought beach slippers like Luffy did instead of his boots, he wished he brought an useful hat to block the sunlight like Luffy's straw hat instead of his fur-covered one. He wouldn't be sweaty and smelly if he brought those things. He wouldn't be grabbing his hat with all the force his fingers have, unloading his unnecessary fury on the poor thing, his hair wouldn't be a sweaty mess, he would look normal.

The walk back to Luffy's building takes longer than what it took yesterday. Luffy lets Chopper walk around with his leash loose so the dog takes every chance he has to stop and sniff randomly, taking his time every time he does so. Even Luffy seems to be walking slower, his feet dragging on the pavement almost like he's numb.

"Will you come tomorrow too?" Luffy asks when Chopper stops to sniff a small and still growing tree. In front of them stands a vitrine of a fancy store, with two fancy mannequins wearing two fancy dresses and facing the people walking outside with their weird poses and nonexistent faces. Law feels only slightly uncomfortable by their presence and judgmental figure.

"If you want me to," he reponds.

Luffy stays silent for a while, watching Chopper. "Yeah, I guess," he says and tugs at Choppers collar for him to stop vandalizing the poor three with his nose. "If that's not an inconvenience, I mean."

 _I should be studying_ , Law thinks. "It's not," he says instead, because it's not like he has his finals next week, it's not like he's wasting precious time doing, well nothing. But also, it's not like he has left all his studies for the last minute, it's not like he doesn't have things more or less sorted out already, because he always has everything sorted out. So no, it's not an inconvenience.

By the time they start walking again, Law feels like he may collapse right there. Stay in the same place and receiving the sunlight directly in the face was not a good idea. He regrets ever complaining about how cold the spring was being, he regrets it tremendously. He wants the cold days back, he wants the rain and the snow and the wind back.

Luffy's a bit ahead of him which is weird, considering how slowly he's walking. He stops in his tracks then and looks back a Law. "You okay?"

"Yeah," Law responds and does a small wave with his hand, just to prove his point, even though his face must be saying the contrary.

Law doesn't know how Luffy does it, he's sweating too but he looks fine, honestly looks better than what Law has ever seen over the past few weeks. There is color on his cheeks, actual color. Law hasn't seen color on his checks since the last time they were both at Bell-merè's, which feels like ages ago. Luffy always had color on his cheeks when working, he always looked happy when he was talking to the customers. Law wants him to get back at work, fuck it if Shachi gets unemployed, it's not like he needs money or is the employer of the month anyway. And it would be so good if Shachi would just stop rambling about Nami every time he's with Law, it's exhausting.

"You sure?" Luffy tries again. They both ignore the fact Chopper is vandalizing another tree. "You look like you're melting."

 _That's because I am_ , Law thinks. "I'm fine just-" he stops when a bunch of kids pass right between them and one not so accidentally shoves him out of the way. Stupid kids with their stupid energy and their stupid rudeness, he could've at least apologize. Law glares at their backs while they run, hoping that at least one of them fall and break his nose on the ground.

None of them fall though, which is disappointing. But they do run towards an ice cream parlor which couldn't be more convenient. "Hey, do you want ice cream?" Law asks Luffy, turning his attention back to Luffy that smiles, slightly and revealing a hint of his big teeth in return. It's a win. "I'll take that as a yes."

Law ends up buying the ice creams while Luffy waits outside with Chopper. He buys two, randomly flavored, because Luffy didn't tell him what flavour he liked and Law isn't a whitch or that good at taking guesses. As soon as he gets outside, they start melting so fast his fingers get sticky before he even has time to hand Luffy his.

He wished Chopper wasn't a dog, or that the ice cream parlor was somehow dog-friendly and let dogs in, because inside surely was a lot fresher than outside. They seat on a bunch of stairs right next to the place, eating the ice creams and doing some sort of advertisement just by doing so.

The ice cream is the most delicious thing Law has had in awhile, Shachi doesn't give him free pastries and Law still refuses to buy them when Nami's there, so he has been a bit sugar deprived. Law feels fresher, fatter but fresher, and their view of the sunset is quite beautiful from their place on the stairs. Luffy eats his faster than Law, but still makes a mess out of himself, with his mouth, fingers and front of the shirt covered in the light blue of the ice cream.

Law could've understood the mess if Chopper had jumped or tried to eat the ice cream, but the dog stayed calm and actually sat on the step, waiting for Luffy to give him a piece only in the end like a civilized dog he is.

"Can I have your number?" Luffy asks once Law finishes eating and starts cleaning his hands to his pants, because all the napkins he brought with him from the ice cream parlor were used to clean Luffy's mess and he was too lazy to get up and go grab a few more. The question catches Law off guard and he stays looking at Luffy, trying to figure out what has just left his mouth. The corners of his mouth are blue too.

"Yeah, sure. Give me your phone," Law says then and extended his hand towards Luffy. Law hopes he doesn't mind getting his phone a bit mushy.

"Actually, I didn't bring mine with me," Luffy says and scratches the back of his neck. "Give me yours instead, I will put mine."

"Did you forget it?" Law asks gets his phone out of his pocket.

"No, they keep calling and the vibration is annoying," Luffy mutters.

It's only when Law tries to unlock his phone that he realizes it isn't working, the battery ran out again. His phone is useless nowadays, the battery is fucked up and it's so slow that is frustrating. He needs another one.

"I don't have battery," Law says and feels stupid right after.

Luffy lets out that small smile again. "So, can I have your number tomorrow?"

Law was about to say yes when he remembers they don't need to have their phones there or working properly to exchange numbers, they can do it on the old fashioned way that works just the same. "Wait a second."

He goes back to the ice cream parlor. There was a bunch of pens, yellow and with the place's logotype in black, along with some candies, and heart shaped lollipops. He buys a pen, cursing mentally at the abnormally high price of that piece of shit. He grabs two more napkins and leaves.

Luffy's still in the same position, petting Chopper that's just laying on his back, his belly exposed. He watches as Law sits and puts a napkin on his knee, to write his number on it.

"No, wait," Luffy says and he realizes what Law's doing. "I don't want to lose it, just write on my hand. It's harder to lose."

Law huffs, and rolls his eyes slightly, playfully. Luffy raises his hand in the air and lets Law grab it to write his number. It's weird, but Law has imagined Luffy hands to be soft or something, considering how delicate they look, but he's surprised to find they're actually calloused and warm in comparison to his cold and mushy ones.

Once, when Shachi got beat by the boyfriend of the girl he was flirting, Law was the one that held a frozen bag of peas against his forehead. _Cold hands, warm heart_ , Shachi told him with his drunk voice before passing out. _Luffy has warm hands,_ Law notices.

Law can sense Chopper looking at him from the ground while he writes on Luffy's back of the hand, it's disconcerting.

Luffy stares at the blue numbers on his hand for a while. "I still haven't memorized my new number, I thought I did but I keep messing up the order, " Luffy says then, refusing the pen Law was handing, seeming a bit shy.

Law remembers Nami telling him one day that Luffy's phone was destroyed during the accident and they had a problem with keeping the same number on the new one, so they just gave up altogether and asked for a new one. He can't blame Luffy for not having enough patience to memorize the new number.

"Then call if you need me," Law says and shoves his new pen and useless phone in his pocket. "Now let's get you home."

They do the rest of the walk under a somewhat tolerable silence. This time though, when they get to Luffy's building's door, he asks what's Law will do on the rest of the afternoon.

"Library," Law responds. Jean stayed with most of his notes the other day, he's getting them back now. "I'm meeting a friend there to, hum, exchange notes."

"See you tomorrow then," Luffy says and Law does a small wave before he goes inside his building and closes the door behind him, leaving Law's sweaty figure all by himself.

Law wants a shower, so desperately it hurts. He wants to get rid of the layers of sweat covering him under his clothes and wants to get rid of the smell he knows he has but his nose can't quite catch anymore. But he can't, he needs the notes so he can start studying properly when he still has time and enough energy to do so. He has neglected his studies already too much, and he knows this isn't going to be is last visit to Luffy, especially not now that the guy has his number. Only God knows how many time he's going to use it.

He gets on a bus and goes to the library. He stays there three hours, because, apparently, he's great at explaining pathologies but doesn't have an readable handwriting at times. He and Jean end up sharing a cab, Law getting out first.

The first thing he does when he gets home is put his phone charging but, when it takes too goddamn long to just switch on, he heads for a well-deserved shower.

When he gets out, he's a bit disappointed to not see any missed calls from an unknown number, just from Nami.

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On Saturday, he wakes up later than what he wanted. He ended up staying until late at night talking to Nami over the phone because he couldn't ignore her forever, even if she's annoyingly annoying. She gave him a lecture at first, doing a monolog for at least the first half of the phone call duration, but then she stopped talking altogether when Law started talking about Luffy.

Law didn't really tell her anything important though, or anything remotely interesting, because he's keeping it a secret still. But she seemed pleased to hear Luffy's has taken some fresh air on the face, which prevented a ton of a lot more questions.

During the night, Law didn't receive more calls, or any texts that he was kind of hoping for. But Law didn't think about it much. Probably Luffy didn't call yesterday because he thought Law was still at the library with his phone still without battery, even though Law wouldn't be there until late, he still isn't desperate to stay at a library until midnight.

In the morning, Law realizes his apartment is too hot for him to be able to breathe properly and he has to open all the windows his apartment has to offer, which aren't really that many. When he opens the first one, the smell of the humidity in the air and the giant and whitish clouds in the part of the sky he can see tell him it's only a matter of time before it starts raining.

His high school geography teacher would be proud of him, or maybe not, there's nothing that can impress that old and crazy ass woman after all. But either way, she should be, because the first thing he remembers when he sees those clouds is her high pitched voice explaining the process of formation of the convecting precipitation. Fucking high temperatures make the fucking air masses fucking rise and cool and condense and form fucking thunderstorms. Or something like that.

That weather couldn't come at a more inconvenient time. It makes him sleepy and moody, and not at all focused like he needs to be, he needs to study. Fuck those people that say the best weather to study is rain, fuck them, they don't know what they're talking about. Rain means sleep, and get under the covers and probably hot chocolate too, but since he can't do any of that, he will just stay with a headache mocking him for the rest of the day and a sleepiness that makes his eyes feel heavy and his mouth to not stop opening with yawns.

When the clock on his phone marks two in the afternoon, Law realizes he has been already studying for five hours straight. He didn't have lunch, just a poor excuse of a snack, but he doesn't have the appetite.

As he looks through his living room's windows, he notices that it still hasn't started to rain, which, by Law's calculations, should've been hours ago. That's why Law hates meteorology, there are just so many small and insignificant things that can change the weather in every single fucking aspect possible. Is just so unpredictable, at least for an average person like him that evaluate the weather through what he can see of the sky, which is basically just a rectangle if he looks through one of his windows.

Law feels tired and his head feels heavy. He misses caffeine and sleep and probably sugar too. He feels the sudden urge to go grab a cover and just seat on the couch and watch a stupid tv show that only people like Shachi would see, feels the sudden urge to call Shachi or Penguin, or even Jean to ask for company, but then he remembers they aren't available.

He suddenly feels what could be considered as lonely, alone inside of his dark and stuffy apartment. Law doesn't like it.

He decides to go for a walk, only to change his mind right after. There are just so many places he can go, and only a few will protect him from the rain he knows will start falling anytime soon. He decides to call Shachi, only to then remember that the guy went with Penguin to a camp or whatever the hell it was and is probably still sleeping and hungover and not in the mood to put up with Law.

He decides to call Nami, only to then remember she's still working and won't even talk with him for more than a few seconds if the topic of the conversation doesn't somehow turn around Luffy. He decides to go make his own lunch, only to then see his fridge is basically empty because he forgot to go shopping again and doesn't have enough creativity inside his system to improvise a healthy meal with the depressing amount and variety of ingredients he has available.

He decides to stay studying, using the remaining brain cells he has while they're still working. His brain will eventually forget about his problems once it's overloaded with information. But then his phone starts buzzing on top of his table, and Law tries to ignore it, he truly tries, but his tentative doesn't last long.

He stares at the number flashing across his phone's screen, it's unknown, but Law knows it's Luffy. Is not like Law gives his phone number just like that to random people, so it can only be Luffy.

And what should he do? Should he answer it right away, or wait a bit longer? Law just doesn't want to give the message that he spent all morning with his phone glued to his hand, hoping for Luffy to call him, because he didn't, he had a productive morning and there's no way he could've written so much shit if his hand was occupied. He doesn't want to give the message that he may be a bit desperate for human interactions, or that his life is just a boring hell where he doesn't have anything to do, because he isn't desperate by any means and sure has tons of work to do.

He feels stupid when he realizes he's stressing out over a phone call he keeps refusing to answer, because he's an idiot. Who the hell cares. Law doesn't like when his brain stops making sense, he feels dumb. He doesn't know how people can survive while being dumb, is such a weird feeling when the brain doesn't do a proper job at, well, thinking.

Law answers the call then, when he notices the amount of time his brain just zoomed out and before his phone stopped buzzing.

Law apologizes, giving some sort of bad excuse, saying that he left the phone in his bedroom, even though he didn't have to.

Law isn't a liar, and yet he's been lying a lot lately. It's weird.

They end up talking a lot more than what Law was expecting. He expected a 'hello this is my number bye' sort of call, not a 'hey let's talk for hours'. Law expected a sort call and ended up talking about things he didn't even know he knew about, or knew he had an opinion about.

Law ended up neglecting his studies, again, putting all his papers aside, slightly organized and then head towards the couch. He doesn't remember having grabbed a blanket or having positioned himself in a weird position on the couch to be able to face the window. He doesn't remember when the sky became darker due to the clouds, or when it started to get colder. He doesn't remember when his phone started to get hot next to his ear or when his headache curled back to the deeps of his brain and left him alone.

He doesn't remember the point of the conversation he's currently having with Luffy, but when he moves his phone away of his ear momentarily to check the time, he's only merely surprised to see it's already past four. If things went like Law had planned, which they never do so he doesn't know why he keeps trying to do mental check-lists or try to prepare and organize his life beforehand, Law would be preparing himself to leave his apartment after studying for seven hours straight to go see Luffy and to do something with him.

Instead, he ended up studying only five hours and done nothing more. But at least he doesn't have to go see Luffy, Law guesses that was the whole point of the guy calling him. If Law doesn't need to cross the city to Luffy's apartment and spend an hour outdoors with him, only to then cross the city again back to his own, it will save him a good amount of time, and money. And he has time to study during that time instead, before he has to call Shachi and Penguin to make sure they're still alive in the woods and weren't eaten by a bear.

"Law? You still there?"

"Yeah, yeah," Law says and sighs, he hates it when his brain starts to zoom out of reality and creates a barrier between in and the world. "Just thinking about other things. Sorry."

"You're always thinking about other things," Luffy teases and Law fights the urge to roll his eyes, Shachi's always complaining about that fact, he finds the subject a bit odd. It's not is fault that his brain is always stressed.

Law finds it hard to concentrate on the conversation after that. His belly growls and he feels dizzy. Luffy must've felt his lack of interest, because the call ends not long after that. He feels stupid when he throws always his phone and it crashes against the floor, he should've paid attention, that's all he's good at. _And yet you still failed, no wonder no one relies on you to talk about their problems._

He wished he had things to occupy his mind with other than his studies, he wished he had more friends just to, you know, make plans and leave his depressing apartment for a few hours. He wished he had proper food in the kitchen. He can't remember the last time he had a proper meal, and it was probably take out brought by Shachi or Penguin. Sometimes he also wished he had a job, to have something to occupy himself and earn money so he could buy proper food and proper clothes.

He wished so many things.

And yet he isn't able to accomplish any of them. The days pass by him and he barely notices, he hates when he doesn't have productive days, and they're are just getting more and more frequent. The only things that mark the passage of time are the callus on his ring finger, caused by too many hours writing and too much force applied on the pen; the bags underneath his eyes due to all the nights he spends looking at the dark ceiling, completely awake; and the mess that gets added to the mess already inside his apartment, each day there's more dirty clothes on his bathroom's floor, more thrash he needs to take outside and less food.

He decides to clean things a bit. It always makes him feel a bit better, a bit more accomplished with himself, a bit more functional as a human being. He takes the trash out and changes the bed sheets that were cleaned ages ago, organizes all the books laying around and cleans the dirty containers in the sink.

Once he's satisfied with his work, he's sweaty and goes to take a shower. He rubs his skin until it's red, until it hurts when the hot water runs over it. He still feels weird, bored, beyond bored, and he hates it.

Luffy called and didn't invite him. He called and didn't ask if Law was coming today too. He called, so that means Law doesn't need to go to his apartment today, he already made his part.

Law feels like punching something, someone. He wants to get rid of his bad mood with one well-given punch, he wants to break something, see red. So he punches his bathroom's wall, right on the pastel colored tiles that he abominates. And he punches them again and again, until he his knuckles are skinned and the pain doesn't let him close his first again for another punch.

He looks at himself in the mirror, still humid by the hot water of the shower, drops dripping down to the lavatory. The towel around his waist has fallen, exposing his hard cock, arching for attention.

Law has been like things a few times in his life. Clueless about what he's doing, drifting in the world without really anything to do, any goal; and angry with everything and mostly at himself for that. He remembers when he once broke his hand, he was still in high school and the concrete wall he chose ended up fucking up his fingers, he was just glad he decided to punch with his left hand that day.

He remembers the rage he felt, how he had to choose between the wall or someone's face. And he remembers the excruciating pain, how he felt the bones breaking against the wall, how he fucked up the skin until his hand was just a disfigured thing covered in blood. He isn't stupid to the point of repeating that, at least not so soon, but he wants it, so much.

He wants to get savage, to punch and kick and just let his force and animalistic side get over him. Law looks at his reflection, he wants to break the mirror into pieces.

But he doesn't, because his consciousness is always there, disapproving everything he does. So he just steps back inside the shower and deals with his dick. It always happens, every time he loses a bit of control of his mind so does he lose the control of his body. And he hates it, he hates losing control, he hates his primal instincts and appetites.

Law places his against the shaft and curls his fingers around it, getting a firm grip. The strokes began slow and steady, all the way up and then all the way down, but, soon enough, he goes faster and faster until he's coming, hard. He watches as his cum disappears through the holes in the drain, along with the cold water.

 _I'm getting insane_ , Law thinks once he looks at himself in the mirror again, _I need to leave this fucking apartment_. His hair his mostly dry by now, and he just needs to pass the towel on his lower half before leaving the bathroom. He picks his phone from the floor on his way to his bedroom and puts it between his ear and his shoulder while searching on his drawer for some clean and slightly pleasant clothes.

"Yo, Law! What a surprise!" Penguin greets him, overly excited as always. "Listen Shachi's kind of occupied now, he's trying to make a fire for tonight's barbecue. I will be his lovely assistant, what can I do for ya?"

Law takes a deep breath. "Tell me you have meat and space in the tent for another person," Law says and receives a long pause in response, followed by a long laugh and a phrase that's not direct to him and that he can't understand, and suddenly Shachi's the one on the phone.

"Of course we have!" He screams and Law can only imagine that's because Penguin must be holding the phone against his ear. "But bring potato chips, we've run out of them."

Then the lovely assistant is back, telling Law the directions to get to the camping park.

Law puts some spare clothes inside the only sports bag he owns and then he's out. He just needs to leave the town and go a bit farther. Law decides to take the train to get to the periphery and, during the twenty minutes he has for it to arrive, he goes and buys the potato chips, six large bags, because he knows Shachi can eat four alone. He brought every flavor available on the small convenience store just outside the train station, pepper, ketchup, spicy, onion, cheese and paprika.

It takes an hour before he's able to leave the train. The damn thing was old and uncomfortable, the seats creaking every time the train made a turn. His train carriage was mostly empty, just an old lady sleeping with her head again the window in front of him, and a couple of teens sat at the very end, whispering excitedly and laughing every so often. He spends the whole time looking at the window, watching as the buildings changed from large and monumental, to high and fancy and then to blocks and blocks of buildings with the same color, the same architectural design and with an exaggeration in the quantity of small windows. He watched as the sky above him started to get darker and darker with angry looking clouds. Only then he remembers that it was supposed to start raining hours ago, and it didn't. He just hopes the train does start while Shachi's in the barbecue, Law's hungry as hell.

He has to take a taxi then, and Law almost cries when he had to pay the taxi driver.

The park is, well, a camping park. Full of recreational vehicle and tents and shirtless men doing bonfires of drinking beer. There are dogs running around and music every time he passes by people on his age. Most of them are already drunk, even though it's still day time.

He calls Shachi, to guide him through the park. He smells the barbecue before he sees them, a spicy smell that makes his stomach growl and his mouth water. Both Shachi and Penguin look like wild men when he sees them, wearing shorts, dirty tank tops and nothing on their feet. They look happy.

Shachi made chicken, the most delicious chicken Law has ever tasted. And he made so much they ended up sharing with the nearby people that stayed to eat and share their own food with them too. And, along with all the food, there was beer, so much beer, and bottles and bottles of vodka and tequila, and the dinner lasted for at least three hours, with lots of talking and joking around with people Law's sure won't ever see again in his life.

But it was good, Law felt good, surrounded by happy and excited people made him forget his soreness.

They were finishing the cleanup of all the mess when it finally started to rain, furiously. Law followed Penguin and Shachi all the way to their tent, trying to not get behind and lost them in the confusion that the park turned into, people running towards their respective tents, people trying to grab all their shit and put inside their tents, dogs barking, the dirt ground turning into slippery mud.

He climbed into the tent after Penguin and Shachi, the tree of them soaked to the bones, water dripping to the tent's floor. But they laughed, hard, at their misery states and unlucky circumstances. Law doesn't know if it was due all the alcohol in their system or because of their silly appearances, maybe both.

Trying to get out of their soaked clothes wasn't as funny, it involved a lot of punching each other and contortionism to get rid of the lower clothes, especially from Law who was wearing jeans. They put the clothes outside the tent, on the soaked and muddy ground, and changed into new ones, repeating the process of punching and contortionism.

They feel asleep with the lights of the lightning every so often and with the angry and loud sounds of the thunders and Penguin's snores.

* * *

 **Feel free to leave a PM**

 ** _Don't let anyone tell you your opinion doesn't matter, because it does. Don't let anyone tell you to shut up when you know you're right, don't stop fighting for what you believe or change what you are for anyone._**


	8. Chapter 8

**Hey there guys!**

 **So, my school's over and so are the implications that come with it *cough* exames*cough* However, I found a job. It was supposed to be on a church, as some sort of tourist guide that just had do say hello and all that. I'm not religious, so I would do it just for the sake of showing foreign people a part of my country's culture (There are forty-one churches in my town. Forty-one. The town is a small thing, and some of the churches are right in front of one another, I don't know what went wrong in the past here. But most of them are gorgeous). They didn't call me which is a shame, I would have a lot of free time. Instead, the job I found is at a restaurant, and that damn thing is always full has hell. I don't remember ever being so exhausted in my short life. They do weddings, I officially hate weddings.**

 **I had two days off, and they consisted on finishing this and revising it. I'm happy with this one, I got a bit emotional, but that's probably due my crazy hormones and tiredness.**

 **Anyway, I hope you enjoy it**

* * *

It rained all night. All the goddamn night. The thunders and lightnings stopped eventually, at two or so in the morning, but the rain didn't, and neither did the wind. At some point in the night, Law actually thought the tent was going to be blown out and he honestly doesn't know how Shachi and Penguin managed to keep sleeping while there was a fucking hurricane out there.

Law decides he hates camping. They had to lay down over wet flour, and the sounds of drops hitting furiously the tent and the wind blows passing through the trees started to get annoying really fast. The tent turned out to be a lot smaller once Law recovered his senses, and it didn't have enough space for him to stretch his legs when they started to get numb.

Penguin snored all night, and not even when Law pinched his face and told him to shut up the guy obeyed.

In the morning, it was still raining and the three of them ended up staying in the tent, sat and wet and moody until it stopped or lost intensity. It didn't. The worst part was that the park didn't provide any shelter at all, only the people inside their cabins and caravans had the privilege of being dry and comfortable. The ones on the tents, well, not so much.

"I regret ever coming here," Law says, staring at the tent and to the drops he could see through it. He couldn't feel his legs or his feet, and his ass was started to get numb too. He was hungry and thirsty and his head felt heavy on top of his neck due to the alcohol and the lack of sleep. He could feel the floor still humid underneath him, and his clothes were uncomfortable against his back. His phone stopped working and he doesn't know if that was due the amount of rain Law caught last night that fucked it, or because it ran out of battery again.

"For once, you did it voluntarily," Shachi mutters beside him, earning a glare from Law. He was not trying to imply the fault was on him, fucking idiot. Law wants to punch him and throw him out to the middle of the rain.

"How far away is your car, Shachi?" He asks instead.

The guy looks at him, his eyebrows frowned like he's trying hard to calculate the distance and the time to get there but his headache isn't helping. Law bets Shachi's with a headache, he always has one after drinking. He isn't Law that only feels his head heavy and his eyes tired and a lot of hunger; he isn't Penguin that just gets really quiet and sleepy.

"Five or ten minutes, I dunno, it depends if we sprint or walk I guess," he ends up answering. He tries to stretch his arms, up in the hair, but he only manages to hit the tent.

"And how long would it take for the tent to be tied up?"

"Why the- _ohhh_ ," Shachi says before shaking his head, only slightly. A grin forms on his mouth and then he looks back at Penguin, who seemed to be ready to pass out but laughed a bit once he shared a look with him. "Hopefully not as long as it did to mount it."

"How much time did it take?"

"Half an hour," Penguin responds, straightening himself, no longer leaning against the tent's support. "If _someone_ wasn't a bossy ass bastard, it could've taken a lot less though."

"Hey, you were the one that wanted to follow the goddamn instructions manual. If it wasn't for me, you would still be trying to figure out what is what."

"And if it wasn't for me you wouldn't know what fitted where."

 _Fucking idiots_. "Okay, enough you two," Law says, raising his voice slightly. They stop, glare at each other for a few seconds like the kids they are but stop. He puts his boots on, they're still wet too and the damn angle doesn't make his task any easier, but he still manages to do it. They both follow his example, even though they have to put socks over their dirty feet, covered in dry mud, first.

Law reaches for the sports bag he threw inside the tent last night from behind Penguin, who must've used it as a pillow. He takes off his shirt and dresses a black sweater. Then he shoves all the phones inside the bag, even his useless one.

Shachi does the same for his shit lying around while Penguin changes his shorts into jeans and puts on a coat. He wonders if Shachi doesn't have any spare clothes or if he just doesn't see the point in changing his wet clothes if he's going to run under the rain. Now that Law thinks about it, he also doesn't see the point in that, he just decided to change because they felt weird against his skin.

So the plan consisted of them being fast and efficient so they didn't have to get soaked to the bones. Law would help Penguin with the tent, only because he preferred his approach to the process of mounting it more than Shachi's, while Shachi would go and grab all the shit they apparently had outside the tent. Then they would run to Shachi's car and drive the fuck out of the park.

Obviously, things didn't go as smoothly. First, they got all soaked the moment they opened the zipper the tent, fat and fast drops hitting their faces hard as soon as they exited the damn thing. The fog, combined with the heavy rain, reduced Law's vision of the area to only a span ahead of his face. All he could see was gray, gray and even more gray during the time he managed to keep his eyes open, while the water running down his face was tolerable.

The tent ended up being another problem when he pulled it too hard from the ground and made a fucking pole ricochet against Law's face. He swears he almost lost an eye, but it didn't take more than ten minutes to dominate the damn thing and tied it. They didn't manage to put it inside its bag though, because there's no way, even under cooperative weather conditions, that thing can't possibly fit in such a small bag.

They and Shachi manage to finish at the same time, and soon enough they're running over puddles and slippery mud and with no visibility at all. It's a weird run, the strap of the sports bag crossing his chest diagonally hits Law's hip every time he takes a step. Penguin's ahead of him, holding the dismantled tent with both of his hands and with a backpack jumping to the left and to the right as he runs. He can barely see Shachi's silhouette in the distance, leading the way.

Law notices, as they pass by more tents of all sizes and colors, that some don't look as stable as others. The place seemed messy and badly organized yesterday, and it looked worse now, way worse, and Law could only see what was directly near him and not the whole picture. Then they pass in the muddy path that separated the caravans from the cabins, stopping a few seconds to catch their breaths under a shelter provided by a big ass cabin with a porch and all.

Shachi's ugly and excuse of a car never before seemed so beautiful.

They don't take long to get him, Shachi in the driver's seat, Penguin in the seat next to him and Law on the back seat, along with all their shit and soaked tent. That car has seen some shit, more shit than what Law wants to acknowledge, and he's not sure how Shachi still manages to keep it more or less clean, with a more or less food smell when people keep climbing into it soaked, drunk or sweaty.

Shachi laughs as he puts the key in the ignition and then high fives Penguin before pulling off and drive their way out of the camping park. The car moves slowly through the muddy road, the heavy and fast drops making it hard to look through the windshield, but they make it to the main road and, soon enough, they're back in town.

There is no living soul out on the streets, but there's traffic, way more than the usual and they move slowly again.

Law almost falls asleep in the backseat, his head leaning forward and his eyes feeling heavy. He can feel his neck complaining, but he doesn't have enough energy to raise his head and open his eyes, so he just stays that way until the car reaches his building. Penguin pinches his cheek to wake him.

He thought Shachi would just drop him and then drive towards Penguin's house to drop him too, but they both leave the car the moment Law does and sprint to the building.

"I didn't invite you," Law mutters as he climbs up the stairs, the others following closely behind him. The damn elevator is fucked up again and the last thing his numb and tired legs need is to climb fucking stairs.

"As if that has ever stopped us," Shachi says, grinning. Law looks back at him, glares a bit and rolls his eyes when Penguin starts laughing.

"I hope you have food though," Penguin says when they reach Law's floor.

"And dry clothes," Shachi adds while entering his apartment, "I feel like my clothes are morphing together with my skin."

"I have clothes," _but most of them are dirty._ "Food, not so much. Go look for yourselves and get creative, the first shower's mine."

Law goes to his bedroom and prays for his drawer to have at least three shirts. He takes out enough clothes for him and puts the others on the top of the drawer for them to come pick up later. He grabs a bunch of towels and throws them at Shachi, him being the one who was nearer. He only notices how bad his back actually hurt when he's under the hot water and has to raise his arms to scrub his hair with shampoo. He doesn't stay long in the shower, because he needs to save hot water for the two idiots to use.

When he's back to his living room, Shachi's sat on the couch, covered in towels, underneath him and on top of his head and shoulders. He runs to the bathroom as soon as Law's out, passing by him shivering and looking pale. Law has to give him the clothes the guy forgot to grab from his bedroom.

He finds Penguin in the kitchen, shirtless and with a towel on top of his shoulders. His soaked shirt is inside the sink and his jacket is nowhere to be seen.

"My mother used to say 'unlucky in the game, lucky in the love'. Or something like that," he says while scavenging through all of his cabinets and his fridge. "A number of times I've lost rock paper scissors with Shachi should've been enough for me to be married to the perfect woman. You too, I guess."

"I don't play enough to know if I'm lucky or not," Law says, leaning against the counter, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"You're the one that's always saying you don't have luck in anything. But lucky or not, you sure need a responsible wife more than me. Look at all these empty cabinets, look at that depressing fridge. A wife wouldn't let you forget to eat."

"I don't need a wife. I have you and Penguin for that, and you're both annoying as hell," Law says, Penguin's starting to get annoying and keeps opening every cabinet inside the damn kitchen, looking back at him every time he finds an empty one with that stupid expressing he puts on his face when he wants to prove his point.

"We're the ones that feed you, Law," he says after opening every single one. Law counted a box of cereal that he knows would be mostly empty by now since it's been his lunch and dinner for a few days in a row, a few opened packages of cookies he's sure are old and mushy, lots condiments, spaghetti and a few more boxes that aren't worked mentioning. The fridge is even worse. "If you did it on your own we wouldn't need to mock you about it."

"You would mock me anyway Penguin, you guys always do. Even if my kitchen overflowing with food you would find something else to complain," Law says, angry. He turns his back to him, grabs Shachi's car keys from the dining table and his wallet, still inside his sports bag. "I'm going to buy breakfast."

"Law, c'mon don't be like that, you know I'm right!" Penguin follows him to the front door, he dares to follow Law after pissing him off. _Fucking idiot_. Law wants to smash his head against the stairs.

"I don't care," Law says instead, slamming the door behind him. He goes down the stairs and can feel his rage with every step.

It's still raining when he gets out of his building. It's not as strong as it was before but Law still has to sprint to Shachi's car and, by the time he gets there, the top of his sweater his wet against his skin and his hair is dripping. He feels like he needs another hot shower all over again.

Bell-mere's somehow different when Law opens the door, the bell jingling above him. He just doesn't know where. His spot is occupied by an old couple drinking tea and watching the rain falling outside through the window. Nami's behind the counter, sat on her high chair and smiling at him. It's not her polite smile, or even her friendly one, it's the smile she uses when she has a lot of questions to make and doesn't know with which one to start.

Law gives her his best glare.

"Hello, Law!" She says as soon as he's close enough to the counter. "It's been awhile, how are you?"

"I'm hungry," he says and watches as her expressing changes to slight confusion and then to shiny eyes, her smile growing bigger with the thought of money. He orders four Marzipan-filled croissants with orange blossom glaze, three raspberry cream cheese muffins, one long ass chocolate chip biscoff Danish braid, some honey almond pastry fingers with sesame seeds and three coffees to go. He complains about the names, stating they're abnormally big, to which she responds they are like that so people can know what exactly they're buying. He doesn't believe it, he knows the names are like that because she thinks it's fancy, he has heard her say so. He doesn't comment on her lie, only pays and almost cries. That's why he doesn't eat, good food is too damn expensive.

Nami grabs everything he ordered from the display, in the exact same quantity he ordered, not even putting an extra pastry just for the sake of thanking him for his regularity as a customer, even though he doesn't come to Bell-mere's as often as he used too.

"So," Nami starts while putting the pastries inside two small card boxes, "how's Luffy?"

She took longer to ask that than what Law expected. He was expecting her to ask the moment he the bell jingled on top of his head and she noticed him. He looks at her and arches an eyebrow.

"Shouldn't you know better than me?" Law asks. Nami's mouth turns into a thin red line and her stare into a glare.

"You're such a jerk, you know that?" She says, bitterly. Yeah, Law knows. "I thought you were with him last night since you two are now best friends."

Law looks at her, first with confusion and then with anger. _Why the fuck would I? And wait, is that jealousy? Fucking ridiculous. Un-fucking-believable_. "I went to his apartment twice, Nami. Twice. That doesn't make us best friends," Shachi would've killed him if so. "And why the fuck you thought I was with him?"

"Because-" she starts, and then suddenly stops and turns around to make the three coffees Law ordered. "Never mind," she then mutters, her back turned to him.

"Spill, Nami," Law says, leaning against the counter and nearer her, his arms on top of it and his fingers tangled. She turns around and puts the coffees and the card boxes on top of the counter, next to his right arm. He ignores them.

She stares at him and then sighs, a long and heavy sigh. "It's just- Luffy is scared of thunderstorms since he was a kid and he doesn't answer my calls. I thought maybe he relied on you since you were the one he has let in. I obviously thought wrong."

"I can't be with him everyday day, Nami," Law says slowly, holding the boxes on the curve of his left arm against his chest and grabbing the coffees, two with one hand and one with the other. "I have a life on my own to take care off," he says before heading out, not letting Nami give a response.

He finds it stopped raining once he gets out of the Bell-mere's, letting a small and pudgy man that was about to enter hold the door open for him to pass through first. When he arrives back at his building, it's almost eleven and the sun sometimes appears in the space between the hopes Shachi and Penguin have starved to death.

When he opens his front door, he realizes they've made a fucking bed on the floor in front of the couch, with all pillows and blankets and mattresses. They were watching a movie and eating his old and mushy cereal directly from the box, getting crumbs everywhere.

"Hallelujah," Shachi says, raising his arms to the air and opening his hands. "We were starting to think you've left us here to starve!"

"As if," Law mutters, meeting Penguin's stare and frown. It's obvious he didn't say anything to Shachi because, if he did, the guy wouldn't be so excited to see him and so unaware of the stares happening right in front of him. "I bought pastries and coffee," he then adds, taking his shoes off and heading to the improvised bed. It's way more comfortable than what it looks.

"Ah, you went to Bell-mere's! Did Nami ask for me? I bet she misses me," Shachi says, opening one of the boxes and shoving a croissant inside of his mouth. He almost dies when he tastes it.

Penguin attacks the box on Shachi's lap too, but he starts with tasting the coffee, taking a small sip and burning his tongue in the process. He isn't as experienced as him and Shachi, he isn't aware of how hot Nami's coffees normally are, or wasn't until that moment.

Law watches as his friends eat everything inside the first box in only a few minutes and move to the other. The movie's still playing on the TV but no one is paying attention to it, they're too concentrated in the food and Law too concentrated on them. He grabs a shiny pastry for himself but he doesn't give more than one bite before putting it aside, folded on one of the napkins Nami has put inside the boxes. He drinks his coffee slowly, letting his mouth get used to the hot liquid before swallowing. He feels it running down his throat and until it reaches his stomach, warming everything along the way.

It's weird how he was starving a few minutes ago but now can't even handle the idea of food, much less the image of two idiots eating like pigs in front of him. So Law just turns his head, looking through the window, noticing how the sun doesn't have space to be able to appear again. He feels his head heavy, the fucking weather does that to a person, too much pressure in the air.

Shachi and Penguin eventually stop eating and return to watching the movie. Law thinks it's funny how Penguin gave him a lecture about having to remember him to eat not long ago, but now ate without checking if Law wanted something too, not giving too shits if he had a fucking muffin to eat or not. _Fucking hypocrite_.

Apparently, the movie was in the final stretch and didn't take long before the credits rolled on the screen. Penguin stands to get rid of all the trash. Law puts the pastry he didn't eat inside the cup of his coffee, hidden in the middle of the napkin. Penguin doesn't notice shit.

He ends up bringing Law's notes from the dinner table and spread them on the improvised bed. Shachi turns off the TV and, soon enough, he has to translate most of the things he wrote.

"You have such a doctor's handwriting," Shachi had muttered the first time Law has ever handed him one of this notes, he continues to have the same opinion, even after years.

They end up studying until five in the afternoon, Law translating some words and answering questions Penguin and Shachi kept making to test his knowledge, having a break to order and eat three extra large pizzas. He finds out he's fucked when they both answer way more questions right than him. The exams start in three days. It's Sunday and Law has managed to study only for a few hours, he's fucked, so fucked. He's not going to fail, because he isn't that bad, but he won't have an excellent grade like he's used too, at least not at this pace of study. But, truth is, he's not at all worried. All the other times, all the others exams he made, he was a nerve-wracking in all of them, he felt like he would throw up every time the thought of them came to his mind. He felt stressed when his pile of notes got bigger and bigger every day, and felt frustrated after reading and memorizing page after page, only to find that he still had a lot more to read before he could say he was finished.

Now though, he couldn't feel more calm, more relaxed about the whole idea of exams. He just didn't care. He just didn't have enough appetite to study whatsoever, he didn't even make the resumed notes of the notes like he always did. That was his method. Make the notes of the books on his own way, in his own words, and then resume everything even more. It worked for him. But it was also hard for his hand and for the finger that took all the pressure of the pen. It was hard for his eyes and for his head. But it always worked.

But Law wasn't paying much attention when he wrote the notes Shachi and Penguin are holding, asking questions to one another. He didn't read them, he didn't study them, he just wrote the words. And now he can't remember shit and can't bring himself to care.

He blames the weather and blames the alcohol for his lack of concentration, just like he would blame the sugar or the sleep deprivation if he ate too many pastries or slept too less. But the fault is all on himself, he knows that, that's why he keeps coming with excuse after excuse. He wants Shachi and Penguin out of his apartment, wants to close the blinds and to stay in the dark and silence, just for a few minutes. It would be enough.

He wants to break something, rip off something, hit someone, fuck someone. He wants to close his eyes and just hear his respiration and his heart beat, not Shachi and Penguin, asking things he doesn't have a clue about; not his own thoughts, always messy and incomprehensible; not his conscious, telling him how he always fucks up, how he could've have done better on this and be better on that. He also doesn't want to hear the storm outside, the rain crashing against his windows, the distant thunders getting closer.

Nami's words play on his mind every time a lightning strikes across the dark sky. _Luffy is scared of thunderstorms. Luffy is scared of thunderstorms. Luffy is scared of thunderstorms._

And he gets angry all over again. He doesn't understand why he's the one that always has to fucking help, why there isn't anyone else responsible, just him, him and him. It's frustrating because, like he said to Nami, he does have a life to take care off, he can't keep taking care of others just because no one else lifts a fucking finger to help or care. He has things to study, has classes to pass, has a life to plan, has fucking exams and finals and no one helps him with that, in fact, no one else lets him focus on those things without interfering. Even his friends are thinking about themselves when the study with him, they don't help him understand the things he didn't understand, don't help with the notes, don't even give him back up or moral support, just grabs his notes and study them and make a lot of noise.

He grabs his notes from Shachi's hand and starts making himself the questions, to him and then to Penguin. They both answer pretty well, even Law's impressed. He tries to formulate the major amount of questions with the things he has written in front of him that he can manage, if he keeps them occupied long enough, if his questions stay challenging enough, then they won't bother in insist on making the questions themselves, to test Law again. That way, he keeps both of them and his brain occupied, even if it only lasts a few time.

It lasts a total of twenty minutes, then a big thunder blasts in the sky and Law swears he felt his apartment shake. Then the lights go off, only to come back when the three of them are nearly falling asleep on the improvised bed. The rain gets stronger, the lightnings more frequent and the thunder louder as the storm gets closer and closer.

"Okay, I'm done with this shit," Shachi says after the third time the lights had gone off, grabbing the notes from Penguin's hands and throwing them to the other side of the living room. Law should've been mad about that, but he too was done with them. "Law, do you mind if I smoke?"

 _Of course I do,_ he thinks. "Only if you don't smoke near a window, you can open the kitchen's one, it isn't really exposed to the rain," he says, making Shachi grin, brightly and showing all his white teeth perfectly even though his apartment is still dark.

"Awesome! You guys want some? I swear it's the best thing you will try in your life!" Shachi says excitedly, grabbing the patch of cigars from his pocket and showing it. Penguin joins in the excitement, which can only mean that cigar is not a normal one at all. Law refuses, smoking regular nicotine that calms you the fuck down is one thing, that thing on Shachi's hand is another.

Law then wonders what exactly he has agreed with letting Shachi do, how exactly will is apartment look and smell afterwards, how the three of them will be once the cigars are over. Law isn't going to smoke that shit, but he isn't naive or dumb enough to not know the mere smoke that will remain in the kitchen will have some effect on him, he isn't inexperienced enough to not know he will have to take care of his two fucking friends when they're both done. And he's not looking forward to that, not at all.

He follows them into the kitchen anyway, dragging a chair from its spot by the dinner table on the way. Shachi opens the window and then seats on the counter next to Penguin. He makes Law one last offer before grabbing his lighter from the pocket and lights his and Penguin's cigar at the same time. They take the smoke all in, and play with it once it starts leaving their mouths, forming small balls and rings of smoke.

They look happy, but Law still gets bored really fast. The lights are still off and the only thing that illuminates the kitchen is the lightings still making their appearance every so often. Law looks through the window, to the red wall of the building next to his that covers the view but also protect that window from the rain. He can't see shit from outside, so he just gets up and goes to the living room, where the windows have a view to a small rectangle of the sky. The night has now completely taken charge and Law's actually surprised with how fast the hours have passed by.

He sees the lighting, fast and bright yellow, striking across the part of the sky he can see, and hears the loud thunder that comes right after. The rain hits the windows violently and, for a few seconds, Law wished to be out there, receiving the fat drops in the face, looking up and letting the rain soak him completely. He used to love that as a kid, go outside whenever it was raining and only go inside to find shelter when he stopped feeling his fingers and face. He stopped enjoying rain after almost dying of hypothermia with only ten years of age.

The thought of his near death, even though he doesn't remember most of it, leads involuntarily to the thought of Luffy. _He doesn't answer my calls,_ Nami has said, but it was not like he answered most of them on a regular basis. _Either way, he hasn't called me_ , Law thinks, wanting to smash his head against the window. He wonders how much rain it would take to wash all of his blood if he hit the window and died with broken glass ripping off the skin on his throat. _I can't force help on someone who doesn't want it._

He turns around, ready to go back to the kitchen and maybe join them in the fun. He passes by the dinner table, full with opened and empty boxes of pizza, and two others still untouched that will serve as dinner. He grabs his resumes from the floor, and throws them to the table. Then he stops and sees his sports bag, forgotten near the front door. And suddenly it all comes in one go to his brain. He forgot to put his phone charging, he forgot to even see it the damn thing was still working properly. He forgot it inside the bag, dead to life, uncontactable.

"Fuck!" Law bites as he approaches the bag with heavy steps. "Fuck, fuck, fuck, Fuck!" He opens it, and his phone's there, dead to life and alone. His fucking friends grabbed their phones and put them charging, but didn't bother in putting his too. He punches the floor once, twice and he is going for a third punch when he hears Penguin and Shachi jumping off the counter, so he just stops. The last thing he needs is them complaining about his lack of anger management.

"Is everything okay?" Shachi asks, his voice slow and rough, smoke leaving his mouth with every word and stinking his living room.

Law ignores them and shoves them out of his way. He enters the kitchen and takes of the charger of Penguin's phone, the nearest one, and puts it in his. "C'mon," he mutters as he waits for his phone to charge enough to be able to come back to life. It takes too damn long for the logos to disappear and for him to be able to control his own fingers. His hands shake like he just took twelve espressos in a row.

"Law, you're scaring us," Penguin says, his voice on the same state as Shachi's. Law's scaring them, that's funny, especially when knowing neither of them are actually aware of what's happening, not when they're not in their right minds, their eyes say it all, they aren't even fucking looking at Law, but through him, like he's some kind of hallucination. _That fear is going to go as fast as it came._ "What's the matter?"

"Nothing, go back to your smoke session," Law mutters bitterly and that's enough for the two bastards to leave him alone and go back to their spot on top of the counter. Law decides then he likes high Penguin and Shachi, they're not noisy assholes that make too many questions.

His phone reveals four missed calls, two from Nami, made yesterday, at ten pm and at midnight. And two others from Luffy, the first made at one in the morning, and the second only at half an hour ago.

"Can I use your car, Shachi?" Law asks before having time to think straight about it. Shachi looks at him with those lost and brown eyes and smiles like the answer is obvious.

"My car is your car," he says, even though Law knows that's not at all true. "But where are you going?"

"I will back soon," Law says, not responding to Shachi question, which he doesn't seem to notice anyway. He doesn't understand what he's doing. "Uhm, you can stay here for the night, there's still pizza for dinner. Just, try to not destroy my apartment and please don't kill yourselves, yeah?"

"Yeah~" Penguin says next to him. "Just go get her tiger!"

 _There's no one to get, you idiot_ , he thinks when he takes the charger off his phone and grabs Shachi's car keys, storming out of his apartment. He shouldn't leave his friends alone, all by their high selves, but they're grown-ups, and they're more than experienced on that shit. Plus, Shachi tends to get some sense when he realizes there's no one to save his sorry ass, Penguin, not so much.

He hopes he still has a place to call home by the time he comes back.

.

.

.

He sends Luffy a text saying he will be there in twenty minutes before leaving the shelter of his building and sprinting to Shachi's car. He gets soaked within only a few steps in the rain, the cold drops hitting hard against his face and the puddles on the ground soaking his feet to the medulla of the fingers' bones.

It's a weird ride to Luffy's neighborhood. He isn't able to see much of the road ahead because of the fog, so he drives Shachi's car like he's a turtle and the car his shell. At some point, he catches a car in front of him that's even slower and he swears he isn't moving at all, and neither isn't all the goddamn line of cars behind him, honking loudly. Some try to overtake the both of them, but none is successful.

Eventually, the graffitis start to appear and Law honestly doesn't know if that's a good thing or not. He was expecting Luffy to call, to tell him there's no need for him to help, to make him go back to his own place. But he doesn't, or better, Law doesn't know if he called or not, because his phone died the moment Law entered the car, and he doesn't know if that's a good thing or not either.

He manages to park right in front of Luffy's building. He hits Luffy's button four times in a row, just for the guy to catch the urgency. Law's cold and shivering so hard all he can hear are his teeth hitting each other, but he didn't bring spare clothes because he's a stupid idiot that for some reason stopped thinking things straight before acting. He hates going with the flow like Shachi always says he does, it doesn't work well for him most of the times, and neither does it work for Law.

Luffy doesn't open the door and Law doubts he will be able to enter the building like the first time, the only key he brought was the car's key. He goes to the parking lot and looks up to the dark sky. He knows Luffy's living room windows have the view to where's he's standing, he saw the parking lot when he opened them. He suspects the lights in Luffy's building are off due to the thunderstorm too, because it's barely nine and all Law can see are faint lights coming from a few windows, probably candles. Luffy's windows don't show any light at all.

So he calls Luffy's name, first a normal call and then more like a shout. Time passes and it's only when Law is pondering to throw a rock to the window that Luffy opens it and puts his head outside, looking down and getting his hair instantaneously soaked in the process.

"Are you crazy?" He shouts back. Law can barely see his face, but he knows there's a tired frown across it. He can't stop a grin from forming on his mouth, he guesses he's turning crazier each day that passes, but he's under the rain, soaked to the bones and, for once in a long time, he's enjoying it.

"Open the door already," Law says and watches as Luffy's head disappears out of view and the window is closed before going back to where he was. He hears the door unlocking before he reaches to it, and he leaves a wet trail all the way up the stairs. He frowns when he realizes the grin was still there.

When he reaches Luffy's floor, the door is half opened for him but he waits outside anyway, and asks for a towel when he hears Luffy's footsteps near.

"You're ridiculous, absolutely ridiculous," Luffy says, throwing a blue towel to Law's face. His frown deepens when Law sees his messy black hair, small towel on his shoulders, and laughs. "What if I wasn't here? Would you be in the rain forever?"

"It seemed a good plan a few minutes ago. Do I leave my boots here?" Law asks after entering, Luffy closing the door behind him. He rubs his hair with the towel until it isn't dripping anymore.

"Yeah, I guess," Luffy mutters, looking at him with those eyes that shine even in the dark. He's looking at his hair, staring at it, and Law wonders just how ridiculous he must look right now. "Do you, hum, want to take a shower or…?"

"A shower would be good."

"Yeah, okay, hum, my clothes won't really fit you," Luffy bites his lip. "You can use Ace's, if you want."

 _I don't_ , he thinks. "If you don't mind," he says. Luffy face shows him he does mind, but when he takes another look at Law's miserable figure, his expression softens and he heads to a door that Law supposes lead to Ace's bedroom. Chopper appears meanwhile, jumping and trying to climb Law's legs. He bends down and pets him under the collar, where the fur is thicker.

"Ace was shorter than you, but I guess these will fit," Luffy says, handing him a pile of fresh and dry clothes. Law won't mind if they don't fit perfectly, it's not like everyone is a giraffe like he is, so he doesn't have the right to complain. "The bathroom his there," he lifts a finger and points to the door, right down the corridor.

As Law passes trough the corridor, he notices all the pictures hanging on the walls. Some have a lot of people in them, others just two, Luffy and another guy, probably Ace. Them in the beach, them hiking, them with Chopper, them everywhere, always grinning and happy. It's sad to think those pictures are just memories, happy memories but still memories.

The bathroom is a small thing with the toilet directly in front of the sink and leaving not much space to pass through and reach the shower. A pile of dirty clothes occupies the corner beside the shower, right next to an overloaded basket _. Looks like someone hasn't taken care of the laundry in a while too._

Law takes off his clothes and puts them inside the bidet, his phone on the top of the sink. There's a big mirror on the wall that goes from the floor to the very top of it. Law can see all of him on that damn thing, and he doesn't like what he sees one slight bit. Luffy has put some candles here and there and the yellow light provided is enough for Law to realize he has a horrible tone of pale, is skinnier than what he was last time he checked himself, and his hair is a confused and tangled black mess.

By the time he steps into the shower, he's shivering so hard he swears his knees are about to faint. The hot water warms him in no time.

Ace's sweatpants are a bit shorter for his legs length, leaving the lower half of his legs only saved from exposure by the socks, but the sweater is large and comfortable and fits him.

When he leaves the bathroom, he finds Luffy's sat on the couch, curled up inside a red blanket with a mug between his hands. There's another one on the small table in front of him. Chopper's curled on the floor next to him, both of them looking through the window where the rain is still falling furiously.

Law hasn't heard thunders since he got there, which kind of ruins the whole purpose of him being there, but that doesn't mean the thunderstorm has passed. The lights still off are a sign of that.

"Hey," Law says and waits for Luffy to turn his head and look at him. "Where should I put my clothes?"

Luffy shrugs. "Leave them in the bathroom for now." Chopper raises his head from the floor, tongue hanging out of his mouth and he looks a Law with such an expression that he almost seems like he's smiling. Luffy reaches out and pets him on top of his head.

Law smiles a bit at that too, then the phone starts to feel heavy on his hand. "Do you have a charger I can use?"

Luffy points with his chin. "In the kitchen."

Chopper follows him and, as Law looks for the charger and find it behind the toaster, he goes and eats from his bowl. Law waits for his phone to come back to life for the second time in that day and, when it does, it looks like an earthquake. Five missed calls from Penguin, one from Nami and four new messages from Shachi.

 ** _So at what time are you coming home?_** , received at 8:36 PM

 ** _Shachi fell asleep can we stay here for the night? Oh wait of course we can you took my car_** , received at 9:24 PM

 ** _Your apartment is fine. We're fine. I'm going to sleep so don't bother me asshole. Good luck with your fucking demand_** , received at 9:31 PM

 ** _You coulve at least said goodnight_** , received at 9:33 PM

Law smiles as he puts his phone down on the counter. They're fine so that's one thing he doesn't need to worry about. He wonders if he should or not send a goodnight to Shachi, just for the sake of it, with probably an emoji sending a kiss, but then he decides against it, the guy is probably asleep by now and he did say to not bother him. He's actually surprised they went to sleep so early, it's not usual and they've managed to sleep in the tent, despite the noise outside, something Law didn't manage to do. But there Law is, awake as an owl while his friends must be snoring on the improvised bed, surrounded by pillows and blankets.

Chopper follows him back to the living room and Luffy makes some space on the couch for him, pointing for Law to take the mug from the table. He burns his tongue and palate has he gives it a first sip and coughs as the hot liquid runs down his throat. Luffy laughs a bit beside him, but his laugh quickly dies when Law glares at him. His mouth was used to hot coffee before, now though, not so much.

Chopper jumps to the couch and lays down on the space between him and Luffy, his belly up and exposed, begging for Law to pet him. Law should've felt more uncomfortable than what he's feeling, after all, he came to Luffy's apartment without being invited, again, used his shower and is wearing his brother's clothes. Law's not good at starting conversations, especially with someone who thinks the rain is more interesting than him and keeps looking through the window. And he's also not good under weird silence because it's stressing as hell.

Law's starting to think that maybe the thunderstorm's over and it's better if he just goes home when a huge lightning cuts the dark sky in half and the loud thunder that follows keeps echoing for a few seconds. He sees how Luffy jumps a bit, the spoon doing a whole round inside the mug. Only then Law realizes what Luffy was doing, he was looking to the sky to anticipate the lightning and thunder, to not be caught by surprise. He obviously failed miserably.

"Once, when I was a kid, I spent the night at a friend's house," Law starts and Luffy looks at him with big and scared eyes. "At the time, Shachi was a kid that was scared of absolutely everything, especially thunder. So, when the thunderstorm hit that night his parents didn't know what to do, because I was there and they were never the good type of parents. I remember I grabbed the poor guy and dragged him to his bedroom while he cried drool and snot. We spent hours building a fort with his building toys and pillows and he didn't realize the storm had stopped."

Luffy smiles with his story, turning fully to him, his back to the window. "When I was a kid I was obsessed with Jack and the Beanstalk. Ace was always saying the thunderstorms happened because the giant in the clouds was throwing a party. The lightings were the party lights and the thunder was just them dancing and hitting the clouds with their huge feet."

"Your brother seemed like a cool dude," Law says, and Luffy's smile grows bigger, but the sadness is still there. "Tell me about him."

At first, Luffy seems like he doesn't want to, but then a lighting illuminates the living room and he changes his mind, closing his eyes while talking. "He had wavy black hair that got really oily if he skipped shower one day. He had freckles, thousands of them, on his face and shoulders. When I was a kid I used to fall asleep counting them, but every night I came up with a different number. He also had narcolepsy and used to fall asleep everywhere."

 _That doesn't seem a good thing to have while driving a motorcycle_ , Law thinks, but doesn't express his thoughts out loud. Instead, he listens as Luffy continues, with his eyes still closed but a small smile playing on his lips every time a new memory comes to his mind.

"He had two tattoos, one on his arm and other on his back. I remember he loved to walk around shirtless just to show how proud he was of them. I was the first person he has shown them, and he was so happy when he realized I liked them," Luffy straights up on his position, bringing the blanket close to his face, hiding most of it. "And he had a motorcycle too, a big and black thing that made a lot of noise every time he accelerated. We used to go everywhere on that thing. He used to love driving at night, especially out of the city where everything was pitch black instead of the road in front of him."

Luffy stops talking for a while and all Law can hear are a few sniffs every once in awhile. Chopper's sleeping, curled between them. Law wished he had something to say to that, but nothing comes to his empty and useless brain. Instead, he focuses on the mug between his hands, still full but now with cold chocolate. He forces himself to drink it, even though it feels weird against his burned palate.

"He was cremated while I was in the hospital," Luffy says, his mouth muffled by the blanket. "They didn't ask for my permission. I know I wasn't exactly in conditions to respond, but still."

"Nami said he would want that," Law says and receives a snort.

"Yeah, he would. He always said he didn't want a proper funeral, didn't want to just be buried on the ground for people to go there and cry and leave flowers. He said he just wanted a cremation and didn't care what happened with his ashes afterwards. At least they saved them for me," Luffy says, sounding more miserable with every word.

"So what did you do with them?" Law asks after a while of silence.

"He loved the sea, he said he wanted to live on a boat, or near the beach but, since we couldn't, we chose this apartment. I'm sure you've seen the paintings around the neighborhood, yeah, of course you did. Anyway, that's where I've thrown them. You know, every time he looked at the sky he smiled. He used to say the sky was a sea too, a much bigger one, made of air and gases and that stuff. And the clouds were waves, but with more freedom than the ones made of water because they can have all sort of shapes and forms. He said he wanted to be a cloud once, to be able to transform into anything he wanted. So now that he's on the water sea, I hope he goes up to sky one," Luffy says, turning his head back to the windows, looking at the dark sky. The rain has stopped, but the windows have still some drops running down off it.

The lights switch on out of a sudden, and so do all the lights in the neighborhood. "Looks like the thunderstorm has passed," Law mutters and sees how Luffy's sighs, probably in relief. He wonders if he should get going now that the worst has passed, Chopper's fast asleep and Luffy looks like he desperately needs a bed too. He's pale and still shaking, and under real light the dark bags under his eyes get more evident. "So, hum, what would Ace do now?"

Luffy let's out a small laugh before responding. "Snuggle in bed with me."

 _Well, I can't really help you with that_ , Law thinks and takes a deep breath, unfamiliar smells feeling his nostrils, Chopper's, Luffy's and the ones coming from his clothes. "Then why don't you take Chopper with you, put on some of Ace's clothes and climb into his bed?" _I'm sure his smell is still there, and Chopper must be great to cuddle with._ "Some rest would do great things to you."

"Yeah, I guess, but-" Luffy bites his lip again, harder this time, and then sighs, closing his eyes and himself inside the blanket. "I don't like falling asleep now, I used to, but not anymore. I can't handle the thought of my subconscious taking over. It's just... I can't. Every time it manages to make me have nightmares and they're so painful to wake up from in the middle of the night when I'm alone in the dark. But they're even more painful to remember afterwards, to have flashes of images during the day. So I just sleep when I'm feeling utterly exhausted and when I know my brain is too, at least that way I have fewer chances of my mind turning against me."

"And aren't you?" Law asks. _You sure look exhausted_. Luffy nods with his head, making the blanket move, following the movement of his head. "Then go sleep and, if you have a nightmare, you won't be alone in the dark. C'mon," he says while rising from the couch, his legs barely supporting his weight with how numb they started to get. He puts the mug on the table and then approaches Luffy, opening the blanket and peeking inside, looking at Luffy's face. "I will be here when you wake up, yeah?"

Luffy's couch ends up not behind long enough for him and his feet hang out if he stretches his legs. He has two big pillows under his head and three blankets on top of him. It's been a long time since Luffy handed him the blankets and his own pillows, brought from his own bedroom, and closed himself inside Ace's bedroom with Chopper. Two hours, maybe more. And yet, Law's still wide awake, surrounded by Luffy's things and Luffy's smell fills his nose every time he moves his head on the damn pillows. He has pondered on throwing them away, across the living room, the farthest he could manage. But not only that would be extremely rude, it would also lead to him not having any pillow whatsoever underneath his head and have to content himself with the arm of the couch, which isn't as comfortable.

But the smell is just so sweet, so addicting, so _overwhelming_ that he had to stop himself from turning his face down onto the pillow and just breath it all in more times than what he wants to admit.

Law has grabbed his phone from the kitchen before laying on the couch, has sent a message to Shachi saying he wouldn't go home that night and that he would return his car in the morning. He received a response an hour later, Shachi calling him a Casanova and telling him to enjoy and to not worry. He wonders what Shachi would've thought if he discovered the Casanova was looking at the ceiling, without managing to fall asleep, and trying his best to breath the less as possible.

The thunderstorm seems to have passed for good, there's no rain falling, no lighting striking, no thunder making one hell of a noise and there's light coming from the street lamps outside. Luffy's hasn't wakened up with a nightmare, but Law doubts he's sleeping profoundly yet, if he's asleep at all.

He took his time processing all the information he received during Luffy's conversation. He said so many things and Law so few, but there weren't any right words that could match that so keeping his mouth shut and listening were the best things Law could've done. That's all he knows how to do really, listening and paying attention. It worked with Nami, and with his friends before her, and it seems to be working with Luffy too.

Law stands up, one blanket covering his shoulders, and decides to go explore, at least the living room and the kitchen, giving them a proper look he hasn't managed to give before.

Luffy's living room is a square and mostly blue colored thing, on the walls, the curtains and the carpet with a small table on top, that stays in front of a light brown couch that without lights seem darker. There's a TV in front of it, huge and black, hanging on the wall and surrounded by a lot of paintings that cover most of the wall, some look childish while others just a mess of colors and shapes. But there are wooden masks too, tribal looking, a vintage red clock, posters of places Law has never been too and a wooden board where papers, letters, postal, notes and some photographs are pinned up to with push pins.

There are toys laying around, some half eaten, others with just some missing limbs. Chopper's bed is under the windows, but it is in such good shape that Law wonders just how many time it has been used. _Probably none, a couch and a bed must be way more comfortable._

The kitchen is a small thing, filled with high cabinets, a rusty cooker and a huge fridge where magnets hold a few numbers without a name, an address, and notes. _Buy food, do laundry, take Chopper out, buy new toys for him, buy more food for Chopper, call Nami, call Zoro, visit Usopp some day_ , Law reads. A toaster, a machine to make milkshakes and an orange coffee machine are all stuffed in a corner, on top of the counter. The sink is full of dirty dishes and a pan. There's a small window too, and under it stays a small and round table with three chairs, Chopper's bowls of food and water, both full, right next to it.

He returns to the couch then, feeling the tiredness coming to his eyes. He falls asleep right after finding a comfortable position, lying sideways, facing the couch and with the pillow's smell filling his nose.

 **Feel free to PM me**

 ** _Remember that everyone has their own fears and they should be respected, independently if you think they're stupid or not, if you know the reason behind of them or not._**


	9. CHAPTER NINE

**Hey there**

 **Hope you guys are doing okay. I keep assisting situations that show just how vulnerable life is, it's just so weird to know that for my three-year-old brother everything is amazing and nothing really happens while in reality a person's life was threatened right in front of him and he didn't even realize it. I wonder what's the age when one starts to really realize we can fall after lunch and die after hitting our head, it's just so weird to think about that. Life and death fascinate me so much it's hard to describe it in words.**

 **Sorry about the delay, but you guys are probably used to it by now. I try to write a bit every night before falling asleep, but most of the times I just have time to write a few words before passing out with exhaustion. As for this chapter, it's a bit different than the others, you'll quickly find out why, and I hope you guys like reading this change as much as I liked writing it. I'm planning on writing a few more chapters like this in the future, maybe, still not sure, just to show a different perspective and maybe explain this story a bit better. I get that some of you may be desperate for Luffy and Law to finally be together and all that but, sorry to disappoint, it will take some time. I like slow paced things, get to know each other, understand each other, that's the kind of stories I like to read and sometimes it's so hard to find one where the main characters aren't head over heels for each other in the second chapter that I wanted to proportionate one for the readers like myself, I guess.**

 **So yeah, I guess that's all I want to say. Hope you enjoy~**

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Ace's room is different, so different it hurts just to remember how it was before. It smells like dust and mold when before it smelled strongly like cigarettes and Ace's cologne. Now Ace's smell is fading away, from the sheets, from his old clothes, from the whole apartment, too fast, too soon. Everything is still in the same place as it was before the accident, except the bed that he keeps messing on the nights he can't fall asleep. Luffy opened the blinds before climbing to Ace's bed and now the moonlight is illuminating the whole room, the dark sky now clear from clouds and some stars the town lights can't obfuscate shine here and there, like the storm never happened.

But it happened, his headache confirms it, and so do all the marks and scratches he left unconsciously on the skin of his back and on his arms, now red and painful, some with a trace of dry blood on them; and the bites on his thumb, his teeth marks still there, almost cutting to the bone.

He managed to control himself when Ace was around, he didn't want his big brother to see the marks, to be worried about him. Most of them only stayed on his body for a couple of days, but others left some scars over the years and Luffy's ashamed of them, because they made Ace's frown whenever there was a new one. And some of his new ones will leave a permanent mark too. But now Ace's gone, and so are his reproachful frown and all his lectures. He's gone and so are his smiles and his comforting hugs and his tender words on his ear whenever a thunderstorm hit the sky, but Luffy's unconscious is still there, making him scratch his own body without letting him realize it until it's too late, making him bite his thumb until he feels the bone between his teeth and the flavour of his own blood on his mouth.

Luffy still remembers when it all started, back when he was still a kid. It was a gray day and he was living under Dadan's care, his grandfather sailing on the distant seas. He had made a bet with Ace and Sabo, and he was losing miserably. Luffy was never the best hunter, or the best fisher, or had any skills to make and place traps, so proving he could catch more animals during a week was being a lot more difficult than what his seven-year-old brain had thought. So he decided to go to the forest that day, leaving through the window to be unnoticed. Dadan had prohibited the three of them from leaving the house that day, a violent storm was coming but, at the time, Luffy couldn't give two shits about thunderstorms and, since Sabo and Ace were going to stay at home, it meant an advantage for him.

He remembers catching a hare, and then a squirrel. Remembers when it started raining and he didn't care because there was a snake looking at him from ahead, fat and big, and he had his own weapon, although it wasn't more than a stick with a sharp rock on top. Remembers how the fog started to make him feel dizzy, how he couldn't see the top of the trees. And then the thunderstorm hit and the thunder echoed through the florets, making it sound like a beast. He remembers how he tried to go home, but didn't remember where he was. He knew that forest like the palm of his hand, the part not too far from Dadan's house at least, and yet he got lost.

He remembers being soaked, shaking and having a cold. Remembers the fear he felt when the forest started making noises it never made before, when he couldn't distinguish anything that has near him. The rain fell from the sky he couldn't see, getting past the trees and hitting him violently, the wind ran through him and the trees, whistling so loudly it made his ears hurt, and the ground got tricky and muddy, full of puddles that hide holes bigger than his legs and slippery mud. Dadan always said for them to stay put, in the same place, if they ever got lost, waiting for someone to find them. Luffy got lost in the forest more times than what he remembers from his childhood, and he always followed her advice, except that day were being exposed to the rain didn't seem the best option.

He doesn't remember how he found a cave, he just remembers getting there and sitting on the wet ground, shaking violently and with the dead animals around his waist. The storm dured two weeks, with thunders and lightings appearing every so often, but he only stayed in the cave for a few days before they found him. He remembers collecting wood from outside and putting it inside the cave for it to dry a bit so he could make a fire, but it was never dry enough. He remembers being so hungry one night he almost ate the hare still uncooked, stopping when a lightning stroke outside and illuminated the animal enough for Luffy to see all the white larvae it had on its flesh. He remembers throwing the corpses of the rabbit, the squirrel and the snake outside in disgust, and how they weren't there the next morning.

He remembers the thunders, making a loud noise, sounding like monsters. He remembers the shadows in the cave, how they appeared to move from one place to another with every lightning, getting closer and closer. Remembers how he started hallucinating with the fever he had, how his throat and ears hurt, but he doesn't remember that as vividly as the fear he felt, even though he forgot what he was scared off.

He stayed in bed for days after that, with a damp cloth on his forehead and coughing violently. Sabo and Ace stayed with him the whole time, only left to go to the bathroom. He remembers how it hurt when Dadan disinfected the wounds he made on himself, how since that day she started taking notes about his nails length, making him cut them way more often than before. He remembers how Ace gave him food, and how Sabo told him stories. They forgot about the whole bet, but Luffy didn't, they still won.

 _I was always losing with them_ , Luffy thinks, hugging Chopper, _and yet_ _they're both gone while I'm still here_.

He misses being a child and running after Sabo and Ace in the woods. He misses being a teenager and Ace barely having money to keep both of them afloat. He misses them so much it's hard to put on words, it's like he has a hole on his chest instead of a scar, making him feel empty and alone, even though he knows he would only need to make a quick phone call and all his friends would be by his doorstep in no time. He just doesn't want their company, prefers being alone in his apartment, reviving memories and enjoying Ace's smell while it lasts. People in his apartment would only make the smell disappear even faster, get misled with theirs, turn it into only a memory like everything else.

He's not ready for that yet. He still needs to feel Ace's presence in his life, he wasn't prepared to live on his own, he thought that would only happen in a distant future, not so suddenly.

He hides his face on Chopper's fur, breathing in his smell and enjoying the warmth his small body irradiates. Sometimes he thinks Chopper's the one that really knows how he's feeling. When Luffy got out from the hospital, he went immediately pick up his furry friend from Usopp's house, and Chopper almost opened his wound when he clenched on him as hard as his small body could, as if he was afraid Luffy would run away and abandoned him. In the first few days, Chopper just sat in front of the front door for hours straight, like he was expecting Ace to come home so he could jump on him and lick his face like he did so many times. But Ace never came and, eventually, Chopper stopped.

Chopper doesn't ask questions, doesn't give him comforting words or empty promises, he just seats beside him, licks his face at times and looks at him with those big brown eyes and lets Luffy hug him whenever he needs. Luffy doesn't know what he would do if Chopper wasn't around, remembering him he needs to be capable of taking care of him.

He would've cried if he could, but it's like all the tears have dried up. His throat still clenches, his heart still hurts and his new scar still itches, but the tears never even make it to his eyes anymore. He wishes he could tear all the bandages on his chest open so he could scratch the scar with his nails, breaking the brown crust that has formed on top of the skin, but the last time he did that the doctor glared at him just like Dadan did when she had to disinfect his scratches, and then frowned in disapproval just like Ace used to do, and he's not ready to go through that all over again.

Luffy's exhausted but, for some reason, the sleep still doesn't come. He's barely sleeping now and it's like the less he sleeps, the harder it is to fall asleep. He lifts his left arm and exposes it. There are red lines everywhere, salient on his pale skin and they hurt, but it's such a pleasing pain he wants more. A few hours ago he had a knife on his hand and all he could hear were the sounds of his own respiration and of the rain hitting the windows. The thunders had stopped but he knew they weren't over, he could still feel them, just waiting for the right time to blast, and he was not ready for them yet. He spent too much time scratching and biting when the thunderstorm started, and he knew the pain he felt wouldn't be enough to get his mind occupied during another round. He needed something else, something sharper, that hurt more and cut more deeply.

He thought his mind was playing tricks on him when he heard his name being called, though it was just his sane self-calling him to reason, warning him, remembering him he would regret everything by the time the thunderstorm passed and the marks stayed. But then he heard it again, louder, and that wasn't how his inner voice sounded like.

At first, Luffy ignored the calls. A part of him didn't want Law in his apartment, didn't want the guy to see how's he's been living, how miserable he is. _Nami convinced him to come, like she always convinces everyone,_ Luffy thinks as he puts the knife in its place, _he will tell her everything after he leaves_. But the other part was feeling lonely, needed company, wanted to see Law's face again.

The moment he opened his living room's window, the rain soaked his head and hit his eyes, entering inside and wetting the floor. And there the guy was, standing in the rain with his imposing figure, soaked to the bones and wearing the damn yellow hoodie Luffy used to love back at Bell-mere's, even with Nami's words of disapproval beside him by the counter.

Luffy smiles a bit against Chopper's fur with the memory. _He distracted me and now he's sleeping on the couch_. He wonders if he's asleep already, he looked tired when Luffy first saw him, water dripping from his hair and down his face, the dark bags never leaving his eyes. He promised he would be here in case Luffy woke up with a nightmare, Luffy just didn't expect it to actually be true. He thought Law was going to kiss him when he peeked inside his blanket, thought he would do something other than just look at him and then back off like nothing happened, like Luffy's heart wasn't hammering against his ribcage so hard he thought it would explode.

He feels his cheeks flushing and he feels ridiculous. His crush on Law started the very moment the guy first entered Bell-mere's, looking exactly like he did before changing to Ace's clothes, soaked to the bones, wetting his yellow hoodie, wetting Bell-mere's floor, ignoring him as he put his things on the table by the corner of the place. Luffy still remembers how he was surprised to see him behind the counter and then glared so hard it was actually scary.

His crush got worse everytime Law visited, always carrying a lot of books and papers and his computer, spreading them on the table that quickly became his and almost drowning on them; always with the same facial expression, a mix of anger and tiredness. _Back then I had Ace teasing me with why I suddenly wanted to work and came home happier, now I don't have Ace, nor do I have a job or a place to call home_.

He thought his crush had passed with all the shit that has happened though, but he's not sure anymore, not after the pun Law left when he was at the hospital, not after his visits. _Not after today, and not after his face being so close._

Chopper moves on his sleep and Luffy has to let him go, too afraid he would feel suffocated and decide to go sleep on the floor. He brings the covers up, covering his neck and wrapping them on his back. He breathes Ace's smell on them, it's almost gone, but it's still there. The smell makes him feel more comfortable, safer, like Ace's still there, like nothing has happened.

Every time he falls asleep, he dreams with Ace. Some are good dreams, resembling more memories than actual dreams, and, when he wakes up from them, he usually feels lost and disoriented, like he just dreamt Ace died and he actually didn't, but then the real memories quick in, flashes of images he wished he could just delete from his brain altogether, and then he realises he didn't dream Ace's death, it really happened. It's hard to wake up like that, it drains instantly all the energy accumulated during the time sleeping, makes him want to just stay in bed, in the dark and silence without doing anything.

He hates those dreams, but he hates the nightmares more, there are no words that can possibly describe the panic, the fear that rushes Luffy's body when he wakes up from those, covered in sweat and gasping for air, his scar itching so much on his chest it feels like it's burning. The images are just too vivid, even after he's wide awake, too painful, him laying on the asphalt, ignoring the broken exhausting pipe burning his chest underneath him. Ace's always a bit ahead of him, surrounded by his motorcycle's pieces, some disfiguring his body, entering his skin and flesh. Ace's back is always turned to him, but so is his head, looking at him with white and dead eyes, his mouth moving, muttering something Luffy can't understand, blood dripping from it, to his broken neck and then to the asphalt underneath him, adding to the red puddle. Sometimes Luffy wakes up with the taste of blood in his mouth, others with the smell of gasoline and burned skin.

That's why he keeps avoiding sleep until he can no longer, until he's so exhausted the mere fact of breathing is too tiring. He wonders what Law would do if Luffy woke him and told him he had a nightmare, or if he had to be awakened from one. He wonders what Law would possibly do. He offered his help, but Luffy doubts he thought that through. _He would make me tell him the nightmare, probably_ , Luffy thinks, bringing his knees up, curling up in a ball. _And I would tell him everything, because I can't keep my mouth shut._

But the sleep never comes, and neither do the dreams. He zooms in and out of conscience, resting his eyes, but opening them right after with every noise his ears catch. The dawn comes soon, with bright sunlight entering through the window. He moves into a position where he can look to the sky without awakening Chopper. He sees as it changes from pitch black to dark purple, then a mix of pink and light orange until it's starts getting brighter and brighter, turning white and then changing to blue, first a pale one, then a more vivid tone. He barely sees clouds passing on the part of the sky he can see, so he supposes it's going to be a good day.

Chopper starts moving when the light hits his face and, soon enough, he's awake and frantic, licking Luffy's face with his rough and warm tongue. Luffy gets up, all his limbs complaining about exhaustion, but he ignores them, he needs to go walk Chopper. He dresses the pants he was wearing yesterday from the floor where he has thrown them last night before climbing to bed, and puts on his slippers.

He grabs Chopper before opening Ace's bedroom's door. Law's still sleeping on the couch when he approaches the living room, his back turned to him, holding one of Luffy's pillows close to his face. Luffy remembered the guy slept there, and yet his heart still skipped a beat when he saw his silhouette. Dark and unkempt hair, broad shoulders turned to him, the feet hanging out of the couch. _Just like Ace used to look like when he fell asleep on the couch watching television_ , Luffy thinks as he gets past the couch and leaves his apartment, _his hair needs a comb_.

He didn't bring Chopper's leash, so he stays close to his building and far from the road. Chopper's a smart dog, but Luffy doesn't want to risk him getting over by a car. He takes a deep breath, inhaling all the odors around. The air still smells like rain and wet grass and dirt, the ground still has a few puddles here and there, but most of the pavement is dry by now. He watches as people leave his neighbor buildings, looking all sleepy and late for work.

He misses the time when he was one of them, always getting late for work when his shift at Bell-mere's was in the mornings. When he managed to change most of his shifts to the afternoon, his punctuality surprised even Nami. He misses Bell-mere's, misses his work and his customers, misses the rush hour and how exhausting it was, misses the smell of Nojiko's baked goods and their flavors when he managed to sneak one out of display or out of Nojiko's reach without anyone noticing.

He misses having something to get his mind occupied with. But now Nami's coffee shop has a new employee, Shachi, the friend Law suggested to take his place behind the counter. Luffy knows it had to be done, Nami wouldn't be able to take care of the place alone, even if Nojiko helped when there was a big affluence. He knows it, and yet it's still sad to remember he was substituted on the only job he was good at. The fact he lost most of what he liked, all in one go, just seems so unfair.

Nami told him she would fire Shachi the moment he felt strong enough to start working again. He's not, the mere fact of standing has proved to be a hard thing when one doesn't sleep a full night for weeks, and the lack of concentration and permanent headache only make moving around harder. But he has to start working soon, in Bell-mere's or somewhere else, his savings can't really stretch much longer and he has a rent to pay and a dog to take care of.

He stays outside for half an hour, looking as Chopper smells every possible thing he can before coming to him, tongue hanging out. He pets him behind his ears and heads back when he stops feeling his toes.

Two things are different when he gets back to his apartment. First, Law's gone from the couch, second, there's noise coming from the kitchen.

Luffy puts Chopper on the floor and he immediately runs to the noise of pans hitting each other, followed by a round of whispered swear words. Luffy follows right after.

Law looks nothing like Ace but, from behind and using his clothes, he still reminds Luffy of him, even with the height difference. And that makes him angry. It took too long for Ace's death to sink in, too damn long for the hope of it being a nightmare to fade away. He woke countless times in the middle of the night thinking he heard Ace getting home after a night out with friends, waited for hours for Ace to open his bedroom's door in the morning and yell for him to get up.

And now Law's there, using Ace's clothes and making as much mess trying to figure out the breakfast as Ace would do. Luffy wished he was Ace, would do everything for him to be there instead of Law.

He watches as Chopper tries to climb Law's legs while he tries desperately to not make noise or break anything, probably thinking Luffy's still sleeping. In the end, Chopper turns his attention to his own food and leaves him alone, Law sighing loudly right after. He jumps when Luffy gets near and mumbles good morning, taking over the mess his kitchen as turned in only a few couple of minutes.

He ends up making pancakes when he realizes Law didn't really like the other only option: toast. He doesn't have the right amount of most of the ingredients so he decides to improvise and receives dubious looks from Law, who helps by stirring everything together inside a bowl, his arm moving so fast even Nojiko would be impressed. Luffy ends up trying to teach him how to flip a pancake in mid-air, but the guy gives up after the second one hits the ground, stating they shouldn't be wasting their short amount of delicious food.

He leaves after eating and helping with the dishes, with Ace's clothes on and his still wet one's inside a plastic bag. The whole thing was awkward but Luffy can't help himself but wish Law had stayed when he hears the door closing, all his energy leaving his body immediately.

It's only later at night, when he receives a bunch of texts complaining about how hard college life can be that he realizes it's final's week and that Law has spent a fucking whole night in his apartment, probably losing a really precious hours of studying or just a proper rest by sleeping on his couch to make sure Luffy's nightmares wouldn't come.

He closes his eyes as a small feeling of warmth makes its way from his chest to all of his body. He's suddenly invaded with a need to cry, even though he doesn't really know why. Chopper to the couch next to him and starts licking his arms, reminding his owner he's still there.

He knows he's probably thinking about it too much, giving Law's actions a deeper meaning, but he can't stop his mind from wandering in thought, and he's actually glad that's what it's occupied whit.

He sends Law _good luck_ via text.

.

.

.

The days pass in a blur. Law doesn't come to his apartment again, but his friends keep calling like they're now used to do. He refuses invitations to meetings, lunch in group and simple walks. Chopper is the only company he allows to have around, and he's the best company he could've wished for. He knows when Luffy's down or wants to cry, licks his scratches with his hot tongue every once in awhile, scratches and barks at the door when Luffy closes himself inside the bathroom and makes him leave his apartment and get some fresh air.

They end up staying hours in the park, getting deeper and deeper on it, exploring everything. It's not like the woods he was used to during his childhood, it's only a park that starts appearing like a forest if they walk far enough from the entrance, but it's better than nothing. At some point, the natural path made of rock is gone, but the slightly crushed grass leads the way as easily. The people disappear the moment the rocks do and he's alone with Chopper and nature.

Every day they walk a bit further and both of them are exhausted by the end of the day, which helps Luffy sleep like a rock and without nightmares, at least for a few hours. His legs hurt so much he sometimes can't handle to stand, and the bottom of his feet get covered with blisters that hurt every time he puts a foot on the ground but, once he enters the park, he stops feeling the pain.

He likes to hear the birds sing above his head, likes to watch as Chopper tries to catch every single squirrel that dares to cross his way, only to fail miserably. He likes the green in the trees and the colors of the flowers, blossoming on the ground. Likes to just wander there, his mind free from thoughts and worries, walking further and further into the trees. It calms him down, reassures him.

One day, the thought that he could get lost crosses his mind, but he doubts he has enough luck to just disappear in the woods like that, forever, leaving no trace behind to someone to follow. Doubts the forest is large enough for that either.

He wonders what he will find at the end of it, but he presumes it would only be another entrance, just in another place, far from his neighborhood.

Sometimes the thought of running away crosses his mind, of pack some shit and grab Chopper and just leave for awhile, a year or two, with no cell phone, no internet, just him and Chopper, exploring maybe a foreign country where he certainly wouldn't find anyone he knows. But he can't, he often tells himself, because he has no money and no possibilities of getting away so easily, his friends wouldn't let him, by any chance. They would follow him to hell.

He knows they care for him, probably too much, too obsessively, but he still understands, he would do exactly the same if he was them, if he was the friend and not victim. And that's exactly what fucks his head up, he was never the victim, he was never the one that needed comforting words or sympathy of others, he was always the one comforting, always the one that punched and kicked hard the ones who dared to make one of his friends feel shitty. He was always the one whom people came for protection, not the other way around, he was always short but strong and he only let Ace protect him, because both of them enjoyed playing the roles of younger and older brother like they were kids. But now Ace's gone and all of his strength leave his body the moment he rises from the bed.

He's not used to other people protecting him, and he doesn't like it, not even one slight bit. It makes him feel weak and powerless, the two things he hates but has still become without noticing.

Sometimes he wants to tell Zoro to cut the nightmares in half, to ask Robin for a story with an happy ending so he can forget his for a few time, to tell Nami and Nojiko to bring pastries so he can cry over sugar, to visit Usopp and play video games for hours while eating junk food, to go visit Sanji's restaurant and make him mad with the amount of food he can inhale in one go, without tasting it properly like he always complains about, to ask Brook to sing him a song, or to go help Franky in the carpentry. But he can't handle the stares, the awkward silence that falls sooner or later, the effort they make to not pronounce Ace's name or anything that may trigger a memory of him, like they think avoiding Ace's death and existence completely is the solution, like it makes Luffy feel better if no one talks about what happened.

It doesn't make him feel better, it makes Ace's death and life seem insignificant because no one seems to care. He wants to talk about his brother, about his past stories with him, about their achievements, about the goals they had together and that now are never going to come true. He wants to tell what he liked to do, to eat, to listen, to see, what made him happy and what didn't, what made him proud, what made him angry. But every time Luffy initiates a conversation about him with one of his friends the awkwardness takes place, because they don't know what they're supposed to do or say, they don't know he would very much appreciate if they just shut up and listened instead of trying to change the conversation to a much more comfortable and happier topic.

For now, Law was the only one sensible enough to do that, even if Luffy wasn't the one initiating the conversation, it was him only that encouraged him into talking more about Ace and damn, how good it felt. Luffy wished he told him more, but it caught him so out of guard that all his thoughts got confused inside of his head, all the memories started to just come, one after another really fast, so he ended up rambling random things with no connection at all. _Maybe he was just curious_ , Luffy thought one day while resting under a tree's shade, Chopper laying beside him, _he never met Ace after all, it wouldn't be awkward for him to ask about a person he never met._

 _._

 _._

 _._

Weeks pass and he starts getting out more, with his friends or on a walk through the town with Chopper. Nami stops being so clinging when he gets back at Bell-mere's, first as only a customer and then as an employee again. She ends up not firing Shachi, and sometimes they both share a shift, but Luffy's mostly alone behind the counter the rest of the time. His shifts get a bit shorter and Nami starts appearing lesser and lesser, trusting her coffee shop to her employees and sister. He knows she's planning on opening another one on the other side of the town, Nojiko has told him so one particular day, and, apparently, she's having a few problems with finding a suitable place. Luffy's happy for her, but he decides he will wait until she tells him about her plan to show how proud of her he is.

The first thing he noticed when he got back at work was that now there's a small and curve couch in the corner, the chairs gone. He smiled when he saw it, but Law never came to see and sit on it.

He sometimes asks Shachi how Law is, when they share a shift and the conversation is heading through a neutral topic. The guy always responds Luffy's questions promptly, but it takes him no time to start telling things about himself, which Luffy doesn't really mind, Shachi's stories are funny and most of them involve Law anyway. Law saving the day, Law driving his friends home after a night of drinking, Law letting his drunk friends crash at his apartment, Law always knowing the best ways to treat a hangover, Law, Law. It's like everything Law's small circle of friends do end up always involving Law and him taking care of them.

It's like the guy has no time to have fun too, and maybe that's why he looks so protective and so rude and bitchy and knows how to do things right, because apparently he has been taking care of his friends for a while. He wonders if Nami knows about that piece of information, if that's why she chose him as her prey.

He decides then to make his goal to make Law have a bit of fun the next time he sees him.

But, in the meantime, he works and has to respond politely to the regular customers that noticed his absence and gave him their condolences, he goes to the park with Chopper and only comes home when it's pitch black and he starts to get cold and Chopper tired, he tries to socialize with his friends more often, getting out with them and answering most of their phone calls. It works and keeps him distracted during the day, but it doesn't so much during the night, when he has to return to his apartment and the sleeping Chopper can't help him with his loneliness, with controlling his mind, with getting him to sleep too.

It's hard to get back to sleep after waking up from a nightmare and it's hard to keep his fingernails away from his skin for too long too. Sometimes he blacks out and wakes up in a different part of the apartment with Chopper licking the blood from his arms and he feels confused and tired. He starts wearing an open shirt over his tank tops so he can cover his scratches and it gets harder and harder to stand the heat with it as the summer gets closer. No one comments on that though, which he's glad.

One day he fell asleep in Bell-mere's, when he was alone behind the counter and no one was coming through the door or was sitting in the tables. Nojiko was in the kitchen doing some experiments to make new food but, when she came out, she noticed Luffy's head laying on top of the counter. Apparently, he snored a bit and she didn't give him a lecture only because of the circumstances Luffy was passing through, and because there were no customers around that needed if attention either.

After that day, he started sharing more and more shifts with Shachi. He likes to think Nami did that so he wouldn't be so bored to the point of falling asleep instead of making sure Shachi kept an eye on him.

But he doesn't mind, much. Shachi's a good company and he enjoys the guy being around even when he starts getting annoying. Sometimes he brings his books and studies, others he just uses his phone that his permanently charging.

With him Luffy found out Law's in medical school and that his finals didn't go as good as they should for him, considering the guy is apparently a genius. Found out that he's stressing about it and stressing about life more than usual and that he's ditching his friends' invitations to parties more than usual too.

Luffy tries not to ask too many questions about Law because his friends always said he's not subtle at all and he doesn't want to let Shachi know about his real intentions, he's sure the guy would immediately babble. So, instead, he asks about things that may involve Law, like about college or something, and Shachi's happy and rambles for hours. Apparently, Law's spending some hot time with a girl Luffy can't help but forget the name, but Shachi said it should only be a thing to pass the time, that if it was important he would've already presented her to his friends, which he still didn't.

Luffy felt his heart getting punched slightly with that, but it's not like it wasn't obvious he wouldn't have a chance with Law. He wants to ask Shachi about her, about what she's like, about what she has in herself that catches Law's attention, but, instead, he asks why Law isn't coming to Bell-mere's in so long when he used to come everyday.

"He only came here during my first few days, he rarely came afterward," is Shachi's simple response, accompanied with a shrug. The guy redirects his attention to his phone then and starts typing furiously, a silent way of telling Luffy that conversation is over.

A few people enter the coffee shop but they're so quickly attended that they barely keep Luffy distracted more than a few seconds. He looks at his forgotten phone and, for the first time in what appears to be ages, it isn't full of unread texts, although he wished he had at least a few so he could distract himself with texting nonsense. He starts scrolling through his long contacts list to chose a victim when he realizes the only person he actually wants to text is Law, even though the guy has a few problems with keeping a conversation over texts going.

The last text he received from him was a simple _thank you_ to the good luck text Luffy sent, and that was too long ago.

Shachi's words play on his head. He wonders why Law stopped coming to Bell-mere's when he obviously liked the place before the accident happened. He wonders if he got tired of the place, if he got a coffee machine for himself and internet at home, or if Nami did something.

Luffy wonders if he knows he started working again, which he probably does, considering Shachi knows and can't keep his mouth shut for more than a few seconds.

He's pondering of what kind of text he should send when Shachi grabs his things and walks off, waving at Luffy before leaving, his shift over. He's still pondering when a holy customer decides to finally appear, a young girl not older than twelve, ordering a lot of pastries to go and grinning brightly when Luffy puts a few more maple bacon cupcakes without charging for them. It's only then that he realizes he should send a pun, in reference to the good old days.

 ** _Bellmeres feels oddly desserted today_** , he types and sends before he has time to think and regret about it.

The answer comes twenty minutes after. **_It took me some time to get it you know, cant decide if your puns re getting better or worse,_** received at 5:31

 ** _I like to think im improving_** , sent at 5:32

 ** _Not sure if i want to know how bad you were when you started_** , received at 5:39

 ** _Want company?_** , received at 5:39

 ** _I would berry much like that_** , sent at 5:40

 ** _Theyre getting worse_** , received at 5:43

It takes a while for Law to finally get there. A few customers arrive in the meantime and sit quietly on the seats near the windows, watching the people and cars passing by outside. Luffy watched every single one of them and felt a huge wave of relief when neither of them chose the couches in the corner, he wants Law to see them and sit there.

Luffy sees him through the windows, the sunlight hitting his face directly and making him appear really mean with a frown and paler than what he really is. It's a vision that makes his heart skip a beat and, when he opens the coffee shop's door, Luffy notices he's wearing a t-shirt that leaves his pale arms uncovered and shows the tribal-style tattoos on them. It's the first time Luffy sees them and he tries not to stare at his arms too much.

Law's also carrying a small plastic bag and he puts it on top of the counter as soon as he gets close enough. He doesn't have to tell Luffy it's Ace's clothes that are inside.

"I'm sorry I didn't bring them sooner, I forgot," Law explains as Luffy takes the bag off from the counter and puts it on the floor next to his feet. "I also washed them," he says, uncertain, "I thought maybe you wouldn't want me to since they were your brother's but they were a bit sweaty when I got home and changed."

"It's cool," Luffy says, it's not like Ace's smell was still on them. "I wore them more than him," he adds and, for a moment, Law appears to be having a mental discussion with himself, but it doesn't last more than a few seconds and then it's like nothing has happened. "So, what are you having today?"

"Just a coffee," Law says, a smile playing on his lips and Luffy has to fight the urge to roll his eyes.

"Coming right up," he says instead and enters the kitchen where Nojiko's sending texts on her phone, sat on top of the counter, covered with the white of the flour while her new inventions of pie cool off on top of the kitchen island. She smiles when she notices him standing there.

"Boring day huh?" She asks, ignoring the phone beeping between her hands.

"Yeah a bit," Luffy says. He takes a closer look to the pies. They look good, as always and smell as deliciously as they always do after coming out of the oven, filling the whole kitchen with a sweetness he had missed. There are three of them, all similar and beautiful, with an orangy colored crust. "What are they?" He asks, looking back at her.

"Honey Thyme Apple Pies," Nojiko starts, her eyes immediately lighting up with the enthusiasm of talking about her food. "They're not only beautiful to look at, they're even better to eat," she points to a smaller pie, half eaten, right next to her. "Here, eat the rest, I saved it for you anyway."

Luffy takes the pie from the counter and digs in, using the same fork Nojiko has used. The flavor isn't at all what he had expected, the apple is there, and he guesses the thyme is there too, he just can't quite figure all the rest. He arches a brow at Nojiko.

"The little bit of thyme gives it an unexpected flavor, right?" She says, smiling. "It also contains honey and balsamic vinegar that offset each other."

"It's good, I mean, it's really, really good, delicious, as always," Luffy says, making her snort and roll her eyes."Are they good to sell already?"

She arches a brow. "To sell or to give?"

Luffy feels his cheeks flushing and stares back at the pastries. "They're new, you always want compliments on your new inventions, it's my job to provide them."

"Yeah, yeah, go lie to someone who believes you," she says, redirecting her attention back to her phone. Luffy cuts two slices and puts them on top of a small plate, leaving the kitchen to start preparing Law's coffee.

One of the things he found most weird once he got back at Bell-mere's was how the coffee machine became strangely difficult to work with, just like it was in the very first days Nami had hired him. It was like he forgot how the thing worked, or maybe it was just his movements that got slower and sloppy, either way, that earned him a few burns and a few hours of cleaning the mess on the floor after an incident with someone's order. He doesn't mess Law's order, thankfully, the coffee turns out perfect.

He takes one slice out of the plate, putting it on the counter, on top of a small napkin, besides the register where no customer can see so he can prove later on. It takes him awhile to think of a suitable pun and, when he looks in Law's direction, the guys looking back at him with impatience. He writes **_Youre my all thyme favorite customer_** on a yellow piece of paper and sticks it next to the pastry on the plate.

It's weird how the action of crossing the coffee shop towards Law's table only takes a few moments but reminds him so many more times he has made the same trajectory. Luffy doesn't know what he was expecting when Law doesn't invite him to sit with him, just thanks him with a smile and then turns his attention back to his computer screen. Luffy doesn't know what he was expecting when Law doesn't really make any effort to talk to him, only looks in his direction when he feels his stare. Luffy doesn't know what he was expecting when Law leaves after paying for the slice of pie on the tip jar and tells him to tell Nojiko the damn thing was delicious. Luffy doesn't really know what Law meant when he offered his company, but he sure feels a bit disappointed. He was just expecting something else, a conversation at least, not the same thing that happened every single time before.

He stays at Bell-mere's until late to help Nojiko close the coffee shop, cleaning the floor and positioning the chairs upside down on top of the tables and the tables next to the wall, cleaning the coffee machine and the counter, and then going into the kitchen to help Nojiko with the trash. In the end, when everything's all clean and shiny, Nojiko sends him away with his backpack full of lactose and chocolate free pastries that no one bought, a small treat for Chopper, saying she can manage the rest by herself.

He half jogs to his apartment, not really because he wants to get there but because he wants to take Chopper out of there, go explore the park a bit more, eat a burrito from a food truck along the way. Chopper jumps at him happily and scratches his legs with his nails, tongue out of his mouth as if he's smiling, smelling the pastries on Luffy's bag. Luffy gives him two small muffins and fills Chopper's bowl for him to eat while he changes his clothes to more comfortable ones, a large and old orange hoodie that belonged to Ace and sweatpants. He grabs Chopper's leash, puts some money inside his phone's case and shoves two small water bottles inside his backpack before heading out, Chopper trotting happily behind him.

The air of the night is cold against his face and he smiles as he covers the back of his head with the hoodie's hood. The street is still full of life at that hour, so he keeps Chopper close to his legs, the leash short. He buys two burritos in the way, to a guy with a dubious food truck but that is nice and already treats Luffy like a friend, always putting a few extra things inside the burritos and giving him a few stripes of bacon for Chopper to eat on the way.

It only takes some minutes for them to arrive at the park, and then a few more to arrive at the forest area, the lights getting fewer and fewer along the path. Luffy uses his phone's flashlight and frees Chopper from the leash.

Luffy walks alone for a while, Chopper going to explore for a bit on his own, but he knows he's around, he always is. It's weird how calm he feels, with dry leaves cracking underneath his feet, the wind blowing through the trees, the sky showing a few shiny stars and the darkness surrounding him. He takes a deep breath, breathing in all the smells of a chill spring night. The wind makes his eyes watery and his face numb but he doesn't mind, that piece of forest is the only place that manages to calm him down, to make him feel peaceful.

He wished he explored the place sooner, when Ace was still around, he's sure his brother would love it as much as he does. Now he can only hope Ace, if he's watching him from above, likes what he sees.

Luffy sits on the ground when he reaches the clearing that has become his favorite place, his back leaning against a tree. The clearing is nothing more than a small circle with only grass and a few flowers here and there, surrounded by high trees that are dark in the night and contrast with the open space in between, illuminated by the full moon. It's an almost black and white image that took his breath away the first time he saw it.

Chopper comes back when Luffy takes the burritos out of his backpack, putting one on the ground next to him for Chopper to eat. Luffy eats his dinner with the sounds Chopper makes while chewing and the ones coming from the forest around him, and it's the best dinner he could've wished for.

.

.

.

He always dreams in the third person, or so he remembers his dreams to be in the third person. He's always the watcher of the scene, even when he's in the dream he always watches himself do things. It's a weird perspective sometimes.

He watches himself riding Ace's motorcycle behind his brother's back. They're both happy and smiling, surrounded by more motorcycles with drivers whose faces he can't recognize. The road is a straight line and Ace speeds up, the sun is setting in the background and Luffy knows he's happy.

But suddenly the other motorcycles aren't there, riding along with them, and the sunset makes the sky more red than usual. Ace's face is turned at him, but so is his back, and from his mouth is dripping blood and pinkish foam that falls down to the back of his leather jacket. His eyes are white but his smile is still there, his white teeth covered with red.

He watches himself trying to talk, knows he's trying to asks if Ace's okay, what's happening, but the words never leave his mouth. The bike is still somehow riding, the road still a straight line, but suddenly Ace's on fire, not covered in flames but still burning, like a piece of paper slowly burning and leaving only ashes behind. Luffy watches as his brother disappears in front of him, the ashes flying away with the wind, and then he hears the sound of a loud honk and suddenly a truck is in front of him.

Luffy wakes up before crashing into it, covered in sweat and gasping for air. Chopper jumps to the bed and starts to frantically try to smell everything to realize what happened and where's the danger and only smelling his owner's fear. Luffy stumbles out of the bed, shaking so furiously he's almost knocked down when Chopper's tries to climb his legs, almost unable to maintain the balance on his feet.

He goes to the bathroom and throws up the burrito and the pastries he ate for dinner, falling on his knees in front of the toilet. Chopper follows him and he has to shove him away before both of them calm down. He has to clean his teeth to get rid of the acid flavor and he scrubs so much his gums bleed. When he looks at himself in the mirror his mouth looks so much like Ace's on his nightmare that he almost throws up again.

He's still shaking violently that he almost falls when he tries to enter the shower. When the hot jets of water hit his cold body, his clothes still on, he almost jumps out with the heat shock, but he forces himself to stay inside and when the shivering stops he can't help himself but lean against the wall and cry helplessly, the salt tears getting mixed with the water of the shower. His head feels like it will explode and the scar on his chest burns and itches due to the soaked clothes glued to it, but he can't bring himself to care, he can't bring himself to stop crying.

Images of the real death, of all the blood and of his nightmare cross his mind and he tries to make them go away but they stay there, vivid and scary, even when he closes his eyes and rubs them with his closed fists. He feels his throat clenching and sometimes he stops breathing altogether, his mouth open but the air not entering, only for then a big amount of hair enter his lungs, like a hiccup of pain and oxygen. He feels his heart pounding against his ribcage, hears his own rushed pulse on his ears.

He doesn't notice the hot water being replaced with cold one until it's too late, until he's even colder than before. He stumbles out of the shower and gets rid of his soaked clothes, shivering hard as he tries to cover himself with towels, sitting in the bathroom's part of the floor that managed to remain dry. Chopper comes to him and lets him hug him, lets him bury his wet face in his fur and steal part of his warmth.

Luffy wants to scream, but all that leaves his mouth is a small whine that gets muffled with Chopper's fur. He can see himself in the long mirror that has the length of the bathroom's wall, can see his cadaverous and pale face, humid with tears and the water that drips from the mess of his hair, his eyes red and puffy.

He can't help but let a wave of pure wrath rush through him. He's not that person in the mirror, he doesn't believe he has let himself look like that, so fragile, _so weak, so ridiculous_. He's not like that, his eyes don't look like that, his face doesn't look like that. He's never showing what he has become to anyone, he will never let anyone see him like that. Never.

It takes him awhile to have enough strength to rise from the floor and, when he does, his legs are numb and Chopper has fallen asleep. He lets the towels fall to the floor and carries his small friend on his arms, putting him on top of Ace's bed before grabbing some of his brother's clothes from the drawer. He spends the rest of the night awake, the thoughts on his mind running over and over again, not letting him rest. He feels lonely and stupid and his head hurts. He's exhausted and his eyes feel heavy but he doesn't have the courage enough to let himself fall asleep.

He doesn't go work in the morning, and he ignores all the phone calls his action produced, staying inside Ace's dark room, surrounded by all his things and curled up on his brother's bed with Chopper.

* * *

 **I hope this chapter showed at least a bit of Luffy's perspective. Feel free to leave a PM**

 ** _Remember that depression is not a joke, and neither is suicide or self-mutilation. They're not just overly dramatic or a call for attention. If you know someone who's struggling, help them, the best you can and with patience. If you're depressed or have suicidal thoughts get help, talk to someone, there's no shame in helping yourself. If you don't have anyone to talk to, talk to me._**

 _ **Be proud of yourself and of who you are, if you are not, then try your best to be someone to be proud of, someone you like and are happy to be**_.


	10. Chapter 10

**Hey there guys,**

 **How are you doing? I wish you all a wonderful 2018, full of amazing people, things, and experiences, along with common sense and mutual respect.**

 **I know, I know, it's been decades since I uploaded the last chapter, and everyone is probably lost in the story, again. I apologize, also again. I have a really hard time starting a chapter. Every idea just looks awesome at first, and then when I start writing them down they just look stupid and I have to start all over again. This chapter is the result of a mixture of four attempts and, honestly, I love it now. It took me so many hours of sleep that I'm proud of what it has become, the longest chapter so far! Yey. I feel like I'm increasing exponentially the number of words per chapter and that's a good but hard-working thing. At this pace, the last chapter will have 30k words alone and will be uploaded in 2023.**

 **Anyway, this chapter has more dialogue than what I'm used to writing so if it feels odd sometimes I apologize in advance. I'm still learning how to properly use and abuse it.**

 **So yeah, that's all for me for now, I hope you enjoy this chapter**

* * *

Law has learned how to appreciate Bell-mere's from the outside while waiting for Shachi to get out of work. He rarely gets inside nowadays, prefers to wait for Shachi to bring a big cup of coffee with him because when Law finally arrives at the coffee shop it's normally the time Shachi's shift ends.

At first, Law entered and sat by his corner like he normally would, but then Shachi started to sit in front of him, frowning and muttering under his breath for Law to hurry the fuck up and drink his damn coffee. And that was extremely annoying, to say the least. So he just stopped entering altogether. There was no point in going inside if he was just going to come out right after, most of the times Shachi was just waiting for him to appear to leave anyway.

So, now, he just waits outside, stands there by the window, waving at Luffy when he catches the guy looking at him; or leans against the wall if he sees Shachi's still packing his things. It's a bit weird, he misses the new couch on his spot (hat thing it's comfortable as hell, even though he just had the privilege of sitting there a couple of times), misses the calmness he once felt inside Bell-mere's, before Shachi started to work there; and misses the pastries, more than what he will ever admit. It's not like he doesn't buy one every once in awhile when he's really craving for sugar, or that Shachi doesn't bring a bunch inside a card box with him more often than not and lets him have one. It's just that they just taste _different_. He doesn't know how different or why, he just knows they do, like there's something he can't quite figure out what missing.

But he got used to it eventually, it's more practical actually, and it's not like he needs to do anything inside Bell-mere's anyway.

From the outside, Bell-mere's seems like a small little place, located on the ground floor of a three-floor building whose front walls can't fit more than two big windows per floor. It's not that hard to understand why Law didn't know the place existed at first sight: a few weeks ago, the only sign showing there's a coffee shop there was the one saying 'open'. Now though, the place's name is written on both windows with a faint tone of brownish- yellow that barely stands out. Fortunately, there's a good amout of people that know about its existence, and the space inside is so well used that the lack of it goes mostly unnoticed.

Law takes his phone out of his pocket, looking at the time and starting to get impatient. Shachi doesn't normally take this long and the sun hitting Law directly in the face isn't helping much. He tries to make the most of the thin shadow the street lamp projects, but he's not that thin. He grabs the pack of cigarettes out of his backpack, picks one and is about to light it when someone opens Bell-mere's door and sticks the head out.

It's obviously Luffy, looking at him first with an unsure smile and then with a surprised one, almost like he didn't know Law smoked.

"Hum, Shachi's calling you," he says, his voice sounding unsure. He opens the door a bit more, showing that damn red cardigan he can't seem to put down nowadays, even though it's so hot he's probably melting inside of that thing.

Law puts his cigarette back inside its pack and then sighs. "Can't he tell me whatever it is in the car?" He mutters, more to himself than to Luffy, not intending to sound rude. He receives a shrug in response.

"He's on his computer, maybe he wants to show you something," Luffy says, stepping back and holding the door open for Law to pass through, then heading towards the counter as soon as Law is inside. Law notices the straw hat hanging around his neck, swinging on his back with every rushed step. He normally puts it on the safety of the counter, right beside the register.

"Ah finally!" Shachi says as soon as Luffy gets near him, warning the few customers sat inside the place about Law's arrival and making them all look at him. He sometimes doesn't know why he hasn't strangled Shachi yet, he has had quite a few opportunities to do so. "What took you so damn long to realize I was not coming out? You were supposed to be the smart one, man!"

Law hears Luffy chuckle, so he glares at the guy's back while approaching Sacchi and his stupid computer that has been to hell and back, considering his poor state. "What do you need?" He asks.

Shachi raises his eyes from the screen and Law can see how tired they look. His hair looks wet and messy as if he sweated and ran his fingers through it a lot of times during the day. His hat is nowhere to be seen and he looks miserable and exhausted.

"We need to choose Penguin's birthday present, right now. The delivery takes at least two days and his birthday is on fucking Saturday," Shachi says, rubbing his left eye with his closed fist. Law chooses not to mention they still have four days to figure out the present. "And if we add the usual delays or some freaking problem we might not even have one, but I guess we still have the receipt to show him we haven't fucking forgotten to buy him a present."

"Okay, you're overreacting," Law says, leaning over the screen to see better, his palms resting on top of the counter, on each side of the computer. He knows how Shachi is, he loves to give presents to everyone he knows on their birthday, mostly because he wants to receive presents on his own birthday too. The more gifts he gives, the more likely it is to receive gifts back because people usually like to reciprocate. "Let's see what you got."

The screen shows three open google tabs of the same site but of different items.

"So," Shachi starts, leaning in to try and see, his chest brushing the top of his computer screen, "remember that vague idea we had? About buying him a new cap to replace that old and depressing thing of his?"

"I do have a vague idea, yes," Law says absently, examining each tab.

"Great, so I searched for some cool caps that would suit him and found this site that has three potential ones-" he pauses as the door's bell rings. Law looks up and catches Luffy telling Shachi he will attend the customer with a hand movement. He leans forward to let Luffy move behind him freely. "Yeah, that. I liked this three. The prices are a bit... _exorbitant_ but I think it's worked it. Plus, we're both playing for it. I don't know if Jean wants to join in too, I'll talk to him later."

"I don't like this one," Law says, closing one tab, ignoring Shachi and making him gasp out loud and mutter that he should have a little more respect for his effort under his breath. Law senses the newcomer customer's eyes on him as the first sounds of Luffy touching the weird coffee machine start to fill the place. Law turns his head to the person beside him and is only mildly surprised when he sees a weird ass punk with green hair and no eyebrows glaring at him. The guy seems familiar, even though Law doesn't know from where. He sometimes wonders what he might have done in a past life to receive all the glares he receives on a daily basis, especially from such a demon looking person.

Law decides he doesn't care and looks at the screen again. He hears Luffy finishing the guy's coffee and then handing it to him, the guy quickly rushing away from the counter right after. He doesn't hear the bell jingle, so he guesses the guy took a seat.

"-and this one seems kinda like the one he has, expect from the pompon that instead of being red looks like a Penguin," Law catches Shachi saying and realizes he didn't hear the first part. _It was probably not even important_ , he thinks.

"So this one then."

"The second one? But it doesn't have penguin written, just the figure on top. I guess I could order it customized but it costs more-"

"The first one then."

"Law! The first one doesn't have the little penguin on top and the ear flaps aren't hidden-able," Shachi says as if Law's dumb. He frowns, and Law frowns back, deeper.

"Why did you make me choose if you're not going to accept my choice?"

"Because you have to freaking have a reason for it! You can't just choose one and then the other like that!" Shachi says, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

Law sighs, rubbing his palm over his face. He notices Luffy on the other end of the counter, holding his phone with both hands, tipping furiously. Shachi snaps his fingers in front of his face and his right eye does this little twitch it always does when he's pissed off at something.

"Alright, alright. Whatever," Law says, returning his attention once more to the computer screen. He switches between the two tabs. There's not much difference between the two caps. They basically have the same style as the one Penguin uses. They're black, with ear flaps and a yellow brim. The only differences between the three are the things on top and the word penguin. The one Penguin uses has a red pompom on top that, due the amount of time the cap has seen the washing machine, is starting to look more pink than red and is actually hanging by just a few threads. It also has his name displayed in the front, written in caps lock, black letters over a white background, making the overall appearance of the cap look like a penguin.

In the first tab, the cap also has that appearance, but it's less noticeable. The letters are smaller, the P being the only letter standing out, white letters over a black background. The pompon is a simple white thing. According to the description, the brim is flexible and won't break when stuffed into a pocket or a backpack. _A simple, practical, comfortable and warm cap_ , Law reads.

The second one looks mostly the same, but is somewhat different. It screams _penguin_ without needing to have the word written. It looks like a penguin, way more than the first one. The ear flaps are longer, can be hidden and, instead of a boring pompon, it has a decoration that looks like a young emperor penguin, a cute thing even though Law can't really see it in much detail in the picture. _Featuring a microfiber suede sweatband to keep your face dry_. It costs more than the first one and, with the customization, the price will get even higher.

"I like this one better," Law says, turning the computer to Shachi.

"Yeah?" Shachi asks, looking unsure. "I mean, I like that one more too but, isn't it like, too similar to the one he already has? After the customization, they will basically look the same, just with that penguin thing instead of the pompon. Don't you think we should give him something that's at least a bit different?"

"So you think the first one is a better idea?" Law asks, impatient. That damn situation is taking too damn long thanks to Shachi and his indecision problems.

"Maybe? I mean, look at my hat," Shachi says, getting out of Nami's fancy high chair and crouching on the floor, picking up his own hat from his backpack. "Remember when you went with me shopping?"

Law does, it was horrible, like shopping always is when Shachi's around. He's worse than those chicks from movies that take three hours just to decide between two shirts and then leave without any. It's annoying, so annoying. But the guy insisted, saying he needed to buy something really, _really_ , important. As it turned out, he needed a new fucking hat, because the one he had was apparently falling apart over his head. That's partially the reason why the decision of buying Penguin a new one ever came up, Shachi decided he wanted to renew the hats of the group and, since Jean doesn't use one and Law said right at the beginning -with no room for doubt- that he would not use a new one, Shachi had to turn his attention to Penguin and his poor cap.

"My old one was different from this one, the other was blue and this one's black, although they have mostly the same format I wanted something different. The problem is, I don't know if Penguin would prefer one similar or one different."

Law stays quiet for a minute, thinking. "He loves that cap, has been using it for ages. He isn't like you that uses it just for fashion proposes, he has an adoration for that thing. If we're going to replace it with a new one I think the best we can do is give him on that looks the same," he then says. Law thinks about himself, he isn't going to replace his own, at least not in the near future, but, if he ever has to, he would prefer to have one similar, because he has a special affection for his hat and doesn't want to just lose it. He guesses Penguin feels the same about his cap, they can't just give him a new one and expect him to use it right after, to discard the old one like it means nothing. If the cap looks the same, the transition will be a lot smoother, that is, assuming Penguin wants to.

Shachi sighs dramatically, defeated, then sits once more on Nami's chair, bringing his computer closer. "Alright, I'm ordering this one." He then raises his eyes back to Law. "Oh shit, you want coffee? I forgot, sorry, just a minute-"

"I can take care of that," Luffy interrupts, suddenly appearing next to him, putting one hand on his shoulder to prevent Shachi from standing up. "Just do your shopping."

"Alright, alright," Shachi says, rolling his eyes dramatically but smiling, adjusting his ass back to the seat. "I forgot I was done for the day."

Luffy smiles a bit and then looks at Law, his eyes all big and shiny like they always are under that weird ass lighting Nami and Nojiko decided to choose to illuminate the place. "What are you having today?" He then asks.

Law knows what the guy's doing and, he has to admit, he actually misses the days when he could just come to Belle-mere, frowning, and ask for the usual. "Just a coffee."

"Coming right up," Luffy says before turning his back to him, the noises coming from the coffee machine filling the place once more.

Law feels Shachi eyes on him and, when he looks in his direction, he's eyeing him weirdly, with his face still facing his computer's screen but his eyes looking at Law instead. _What?_ , Law mutters, to witch Shachi just responds _weirdo_ , his lips moving but not making any sound. Law decides to ignore him, turning his head back at Luffy and catching him looking at the display with a thoughtful expression. He hears Shachi typing furiously on his side.

Luffy takes out a strange looking pastry with two shades of brown, dark underneath and lighter on top, like it's made with two different kinds of chocolate. When Luffy places it in front of him, on top of a plate and beside his coffee, Law notices the thing is even weirder up close. Formed by wildly tangled thin strands, standing like a mountain of brown spaghetti on top of what appears to be a small chocolate tart shell, covered with powdered sugar.

Law grabs the plate and brings it closer.

"It looks amazing, doesn't it?" Shachi's says, this time not taking his eyes off the screen. "Nojiko spent most of the morning just preparing nine of those. I bet you can see why."

He does, it looks too damn visually complex. When Law takes the first bite, he notices how soft and sweet the pastry is, and is surprised that, instead of the flavor of two different kinds of chocolate, his mouth gets filled with only one kind from the tart shell and a flavor that he was not expecting at all. "Is this chestnut?" He asks.

"And whipped cream, yes," Luffy says, smiling and leaning over the counter. "It's nuts, right?"

Law hears Shachi laughing hard and has to make an effort to keep his lips pressed together. He still smirks though, shaking his head as he grabs his coffee to help him clean his covered with pureed chestnut teeth.

"Man," Shachi says while closing his computer. "You just went up a lot in my consideration. I'm glad I stayed just for that pun."

"There's more where that came from," Law says, finishing his pastry in another bite, then his coffee.

"Really? How come I've never heard any of them?" Shachi asks, shoving his computer into his backpack.

Luffy just shrugs, straightening. "They come spontaneously, you just weren't here at the right time, I guess."

"I'm glad I was now. You know, you should totally come to the party with us!" Shachi beams, putting one hand on each of Luffy shoulders, using his usual 'convincing technic' that basically consists in putting a person on an awkward frontal position with a lot of eye contract until, eventually, they accept whatever Shachi's offering just to escape. The efficiency rate is pretty low. "Shouldn't he, Law?"

Luffy looks at him, like a trapped doe. "Yeah, sure."

"I, hum, I dunno," Luffy says, trying to step away from Shachi's hands but failing miserably, the height difference between then adding a fun touch to the whole situation from Law's perspective. "I mean, I don't even know the guy. I just know his name's Penguin and you're offering him a cap-"

"And that's more than enough! You think he knows half the people who're gonna be there? Of course not!" Shachi interrupts, finally letting him go. "Plus, you can totally join in and offer the cap with us!"

"I'll think about it," Luffy says, in a tone that mostly means he's declining the offer.

"Great!" Shachi says, not catching it. "I'll give you the details tomorrow."

Luffy nods, looking relieved. He steps aside to let Shachi pass. "Let's go then?" Shachi asks while bypassing the counter, not even waiting for Law's response and heading towards the door.

"See ya," Luffy says at his back, then looks at Law and smiles. He waves at him and gives one last look at the inside of Bell-mere's before following Shachi.

And there the damn punk was.

Sat on _his_ fucking comfy couch. On his fucking corner. Staring at him.

The image of him and that black haired woman crosses Law's mind then, Law remembers him now, him and the woman, stealing his place right when Bell-mere's was crowded with people, a few months ago, even though it's almost like years have passed.

Law glares at the punk before leaving, just for the reason the guy's stare also turns into a glare, and continues glaring through the window until Bell-mere's is out of view.

"Who the hell was that guy," Law mutters, still confused. He sees his reflection in the window of a hair salon, a bunch of women with a lot of colorful things on her heads raise their eyes at him, seeming completely unimpressed by his existence. He feels his brows forming a deep frown and something he can't quite explain inside his chest, like an itch between his lungs he can't scratch.

"Whom?" Shachi asks, apparently unaware of the fact Law was trying to murder someone with his eyes, right beside him, just a few seconds ago.

"That weird ass punk. That guy who walked in when we were figuring out the damn cap, Shachi," Law explains. "What the hell was he doing in _my_ seat?"

"Ohh, that guy," Shachi says, dismissively, like it's nothing, like the guy wasn't clearing provoking Law, shamelessly mocking him. "He's a regular client with an unusual style, that's all," he then shrugs, taking his car keys out of his backpack just by bending his right arm back and sticking his hand inside the small pocket on the front.

"He was glaring at me while sitting on my seat, Shachi, for no good reason."

"Well," Shachi starts, opening his car and entering with no grace whatsoever. Law climbs to the passenger's seat beside him. "You glare at people for no reason other than it being your regular look. Maybe you glared at him once and he took it personally, how am I supposed to know."

Law sighs. Shachi was clearly not helping, in any way, like he really never does.

Shachi's excuse of a car comes to life and, soon enough, they're on the main road, increasing the noise pollution. Law looks through the window, seeing the buildings passing by way faster than what they should be. He didn't really want to know the reason behind the glare, he wanted to know why he chose his damn spot to seat when the fucking coffee shop only had three more clients, and they were all sat together, occupying just one damn table. He had plenty more to choose from. It could've been for the couch, it's comfortable and all, but Nami didn't just renew that corner, she put a lot of comfy chairs and armchairs here and there too, on places where the view is better. Maybe Law's just overthinking the situation, but that glare at the end, and that glare when he approached the counter to order clearly say the guy has a problem with Law, even though he doesn't remember ever doing anything to him, not even that occasional glare Shachi says he uses.

If sitting on Law spot is some sort of revenge or whatever, then it's a really low blow. And a ridiculous one too.

Then something else clicks in Law mind. "You said he's a regular?"

Shachi gives him a sideways look, clearing having forgotten who Law's talking about. He clears his throat loudly before speaking, his eyes returning to the road ahead of him. "Well yes, he usually comes before my shift ends and sits there on the corner when I leave."

"Really?" Law asks, surprised, he has never seen the guy there, aside from that fateful busy afternoon. Law doesn't remember ever seeing him enter Bell-mere's when he's outside waiting for Shachi, so he guesses he usually arrives earlier than today. But, truth to be told, he doubts he would've even noticed him passing, after all, Law has never once spotted him seating on his corner on all the times he looked through the window to see if Shachi was already coming and to wave at Luffy. "And why the hell does he sit in my spot?"

Shachi clears his throat again. "Why don't you ask him that next time you decide to enter?" He spits out, annoyed. "And, just for the record, it should be his spot, not yours, you know. Because his ass sure sits on that couch more times than what yours does anyway."

Law feels the itch between his lungs grow, feels a pressure inside his ribcage that makes his breath uneven. And then he's assaulted by a flash of pure rage, as if he's a wild animal and another predator just stole his prey. He tries to maintain calm the rest of the ride to his apartment, if he's lucky, Shachi will continue on his way after dropping him off and won't insist on coming with him. It's harder than what it should be, he keeps looking through the window but seeing everything passing by just makes him feel nauseous. He tries to prick his indicator with the nail of his thumb without catching Shachi's attention. The last thing he needs his another lecture on how he should take some anger management classes.

Once he gets to his apartment, he bangs the door and punches the wall a few times, relieving a wave of stocked energy every time his knuckles touch the cement. He stops midway when he sees the red stain his last punch left on the wall. When he looks at his hand it's not in better shape. A few drops of blood drip down the skin, through his fingers. The middle knuckle, the one more prominent on his hand, is the worse, all dark red and gory, and that's where the blood comes from, the other ones are mostly fine.

It hurts when he tries to open his fist, his fingers trembling when he tries to stretch them. On his way to the bathroom, with his backpack still on, all he can think about is how good the fact he used his left hand is, he would've been screwed if it was on the right one.

He cleans the blood with tap water, and that feeling of running water on a wound feels as weird and it always feels. He grabs his first aid kit form the cabinet under the sink and sighs in relief when he sees it isn't completely empty. He takes a mental note to refill it next time he goes shopping.

When he sits on his couch, finally taking his backpack off and leaving it somewhere on the floor, with his now bandaged hand, he feels utterly stupid and ridiculous.

 _Maybe I really do need anger management classes_ , Law thinks as he stares at the ceiling. He doesn't know what crosses his mind sometimes, he just loses all control over himself, like a wild animal doesn't control its instincts, and just stops when he sees blood, it being the alarming sign that triggers the recovery of his senses. It's crazy and ridiculous and happens so out of a blue and without a fucking reason the it actually scares him sometimes.

"It's nuts, right?" Law mutters to himself, Luffy's voice playing on his head. He brings his bandaged hand up, putting it between his face and the ceiling, noticing a small red spot on the white bandage, and smiles.

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.

On Wednesday Law arrives half an hour earlier to Bell-mere's. When he enters, he notices the confused expression on Shachi's face and notices smugly how empty his spot is. He makes his way to the corner, putting his backpack on top of the table and then makes his way back, heading to the counter where Shachi's still looking at him weirdly.

"You're so ridiculous," Shachi says when Law's close enough, noticing his hurt hand but not commenting on it, the slight twitch of his eyebrows being the only indicator.

"Hello to you too," Law says, smirking when he sees Shachi rolling his eyes and then rising from Nami's high chair to prepare his coffee without him even ordering.

Law looks at the display meanwhile, full of delicious pastries. Some are new, or at least, he has never seen them before. Others he has seen but hasn't tasted yet. In fact, the ones he has tasted are really just a few in comparison with the variety available. There are cupcakes, cookies, s'mores, weirdly shaped pastries with even weirder names, two big cakes, one white and the other pink with a lot of decorations; on big meringue pie with a few tartlets right next to it, with cream and raspberries on top. They all look pretty delicious, but he doesn't order any, just walks back to his corner once Shachi gives him the coffee.

He doesn't have that much that he needs to do, but he has some work he can do earlier than what he needs to, along with some research he can analyze better later on. He takes out his computer and a notebook along with a well-chewed pencil. He starts taking notes and saving some sites in which he thinks there might be something useful but, overall, he's just messing around, searching random things and mostly learning totally useless stuff.

He takes particular attention to the front door every time he hears the bell above it tingling, he wants to see the punk guy entering and his expression when he notices Law. He bets the guy will glare, but at least he has a reason now.

A few people enter, some faces familiar others not that much. A foreign couple walks in and starts talking really loudly on a very fast sounding language, annoying everyone inside Bell-mere's, even though they apparently don't realize it. He's amused by how poorly Shachi manages to attend them, his face forming such an ugly expression of pure confusion that Law's not sure how they didn't run away. They sit on a table right beside Law, with a wooden tray with two coffees and a lot of different kinds of pastries, probably trying the best looking ones. They spend fifteen minutes just eating and playing on their phones before leaving the coffee shop, no word is spoken, no eye contact is shared. All the vitality in their conversation got forgotten by the counter.

Then he sees Luffy thought the window, walking fast and with his straw hat hanging on his back. His face is as red as his cardigan and Law's not sure how he hasn't melted yet, his hair is the black mess it always is. He smiles when he reaches the counter and then looks in Law's direction, probably because Shachi has made some kind of unnecessary comment.

And then the funny part begins. The punk enters, grinning and shining with happiness, then he notices Law's and it's like he has seen a thousand wars, frowning so hard his lack of eyebrows doesn't even make that much difference. He's forced to sit on the same table the foreign couple was just a few minutes ago, irradiating anger but avoiding eye contact with Law, choosing a seat that provides him only the view of the counter. Most people chose to look through the windows, or to have a perfect vision of the whole coffee shop like Law himself, but there's always a crazy for everything.

Law can only see his left side, his green hair going right up on his head like a rooster's crest. He can't seem to close his mouth that well, due to the shape of his teeth, and has a ring piercing on his nasal spectrum. Law sees him taking off his dark purple coat and wonders how the hell the guy managed to survive for so long inside of that thing. A white stripe goes down the sleeve Law can see, meaning the other must look the same, and the collar and the cuffs are plumed. His trousers are also bizarre looking, baggy and with a checkered pattern, making him seem like a fugitive from a circus.

The guy keeps ignoring him so, after a few moments, Law decides to ignore him too, returning his attention back to his computer screen. Law also doesn't look in his direction when Shachi starts to pack his things up and warns Law to do the same if he wants a ride home.

Law has never had such a boring ride and, once he steps out, he thanks the divine forces above for it to finally be over. He sometimes forgets how annoying Shachi gets when he decides to give someone a lecture, most of the times about things he does on a daily basis too.

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.

.

The next day, Law does the exact same thing and receives yet again a lecture all the way home. But he doesn't mind, much, the punk's angry face this time was more than worth it. He feels childish when he's at home and recalls the episode, but he also finds he doesn't really care. He doesn't mind if the punk sits on his spot really, as long as it continues to be considered _his_ spot, so no one can say he doesn't like sharing. In fact, he doesn't care if the guy sprints to the couch once Law leaves the Bell-mere's and is out of view, he doesn't care if he comes at other time of the day and sits there, doesn't even care if other people do the same, as long as they don't do it when Law's around because, when he is, it's his spot and his spot only.

And he would do it again on Friday if the universe didn't change his plans for him. Friday, as Law learned once Shachi started working, is the day where the shifts and the schedule belonging to the employees change, where they can arrange the schedule that will last until next Friday and switch shifts between them if needed. Why Friday and not, let's say, a Monday, Law has no clue, but he guesses it's not really that important. Most of the time, according to Shachi, the schedule remains basically the same, with only a few changes here and there or an inversion every once in a while, to break the routine.

So, during the next week, instead of Shachi's shift end at four pm, it will start.

When Law arrived at Bell-mere's he wasn't aware of that fact and seeing both Luffy and Shachi behind the counter wasn't really that strange. Then Shachi told him and it all clicked in his mind. He just felt a bit annoyed for the fact he wouldn't have a ride home this time, unless he stayed until closing time, an option he didn't even ponder about.

Law stayed on his spot for a while, calmly drinking his still hot coffee and being surrounded by closed books, deciding which one to open first without really wanting to. The punk guy doesn't come this time, and Law's not sure if he's disappointed or glad.

He looks around, counting the number of people inside and then looks at the counter where both Shachi and Luffy are on their phones, Luffy just waiting for his shift to end and Shachi just passing the time with probably some stupid game like candy crush.

Law leaves half an hour after Luffy does, when his books start to annoy him and he realizes he's not paying much attention to what he's reading anyway.

He decides to go shopping before heading home, since there's a grocery store on the way. He doesn't know why he even bothers to make a list of what he needs at home, he never uses it, it's always forgotten under the magnet, stuck against the door of his fridge. He spends some good forty-five minutes walking through the corridors, throwing everything he thinks he needs at home inside his shopping cart but also paying attention to the price of each thing, he's still not rich after all.

The lights of the place and all the color around, along with all the big yellow or red signs of promotions and sales, make him feel a bit dizzy so he's more than glad when he gets out, his arms full of bags that now he needs to carry for quite a distance. He has not thought this through properly. When he finally gets home, exhausted, he just puts the things that need cold inside the fridge and leaves the rest in the bags, on top of his kitchen counter, not having enough motivation to organize the rest inside the cabinets.

He takes a quick shower and eats two sandwiches before heading to his bedroom, intending to call it for the day. His sleep problems got worse in the past few weeks, they're so bad Law's not sure how he even manages to have the bare minimum of energy it takes to go to his classes and come home. At first, he just woke up really tired, or slept bad, always awakening in the middle of the night for nothing. Now though, he's been awakening at four AM, more or less, for no apparent reason, every single night. Sometimes he gets back to sleep, if it's a good night, but normally he just looks at the ceiling, his vision adjusted to the darkness so much it's like the lights are on, muttering curses and asking himself what he has done so wrong to deserve his life, changing his position in bed so many times he ends up undoing it so badly the blanked ends up covering more the floor than himself.

He just doesn't have any plausible reason for that. It's like his biological clock decided to cut a few hours of his sleep, like he didn't sleep so miserably already. He has tried going to bed earlier. Nothing. Has reduced drastically the amount of coffee he drinks per day. Nope. Has tried drinking hot milk with cookies like a child before going to bed. Nah. Has counted thousands of sheep. Nada. Has taken hot showers before going to sleep. Didn't work either. No matter what he does, at four o'clock in the morning, he's just, awake.

So if he goes to bed early at least he can equalize the number of hours he would've slept if his brain wasn't so fucked up.

He puts his phone charging, on top of his bedside table and then heads to bed. He's not sleepy, but he's tired as hell so he hopes that's enough. He has to accumulate energy for tomorrow's night, or else he's going to be the depressing and sleepy drunk that will wake up with the sunlight hitting his face on a dubious alley full of piss and vomit. Penguin's a weird guy and ever since Law started to go celebrate his birthday with him, the guy always takes the responsibility to make sure everyone's is having fun, safe and alive. He obviously loses track on most of the people he invites right in the first half an hour because he invites so many it's impossible to keep everyone in the same place for more than a few minutes. Some want a bar, others want another so they go on their way. Penguin doesn't mind, after all, it's weight that gets out of his shoulders. He normally sticks with a group that has never exceeded eight people, makes sure they're okay and then takes them to his home and lets them crash there, on the living room previously prepared for the effect, with a lot of blankets and sleeping bags and pillows. So, as long as Law maintains consciousness he's going to be just fine. After all, he, Shachi and Jean are on the top of Penguin's priorities.

Law changes his position, trying hard to keep his eyes shut. He checks his mental list of things he's going to do tomorrow. He has to do laundry, he needs to actually, desperately, or else he won't have enough clean clothes to last the upcoming week. Then, well, he just has to occupy himself with some shit until it's dinner time, the dinner that Penguin's paying for, because he doesn't think twice about spending money when it's his birthday. Normally twenty or so people go to the dinner, the ones that will give Penguin some sort of present, and they eat as much as their bellies can handle so they can party all night long, or at least try. Then they all head to the bar's areas and met with more people and, there, Penguin only pays for his own drinks. It has been like this for as long as Law can remember going to Penguin's birthday parties, so he doubts the plans will change this year.

He turns again, this time looking at the ceiling. He's comfortable and warm, and yet the sleep doesn't come. He sighs, then raises from the bed and heads to the living room. He ends up sleeping on the couch, around three in the morning and with the tv still on.

He doesn't wake up until ten am.

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.

Law doesn't know what went wrong, what kind of event coincidentally happened right with Penguin's birthday but, whatever it was, it's all over now, and everyone that participated just decided there was still some time to party wildly. Law has never seen so many people in one street, at least not after moving to that town, and he fucking hates it. There's no space for him to move freely and he has to fucking zigzag between the drunk bodies, shoving people aside and trying to open a way through them with his fucking bare hands. There are girls in long and short and honestly all kinds of dresses everywhere, guys with tuxedos and suits everywhere. People everywhere. And they all came out of a blue. One minute Law had a big fucking group of people to stick with, all inside and sat in a dubious pub that had happy hour, and the next thing he knows, a fucking wave of people, desperate for shots, just emerge through the door.

It's was so damn hard to leave the place. The floor was sticky, the people kept entering even though there was enough room for anyone else, even the band occupying a whole corner stopped playing. But he managed to get out just by following closely Kid that kept shoving brutally people aside with such an angry glare that Law's not sure how he didn't kill anyone. The street, however, wasn't in a better state, fancy people everywhere, everyone with a different kind of smell, creating such an agglomerate of perfumes and colognes it made Law dizzy and he almost threw up right there at someone's expensive shoes.

He kept following Kid's redhead until they both reached a quieter place between two alleys that smelled like trash, piss, and vomit. Law feels his head spinning around now that he actually has enough space to fall on the ground and realizes he's not at all as sober as he thought he was when he was sitting. He leans against the wall and hears Kid kick some forgotten bottle, shattering it, then he starts yelling and, suddenly, Penguin and Killer are there with them. Law's not sure how but most of the group appears and then they're walking down the alley, Penguin leading the way like the good nearly sober guide he is. Law hears Shachi laughing behind him, walking between two girls he forgot the name of. Then there are people again and he feels disoriented, then a bit angry with himself when Shachi grabs his arm and starts pushing him gently through the people, opening a way for Law to walk behind him.

He decides then he won't drink more that night, he doesn't want to be taken care of like he's a helpless human being with lack of motor coordination. He's good like that, that's a good kind of drunkenness, he feels happier than normal, but not hysterical, he can still walk and remain on his feet, talk coherently and, most importantly, isn't in the verge of losing conscious or in a state where he won't remember what the fuck happened once sober. So he's good.

Law shakes Shachi's hand out of his arm once they reach an area where there's enough space for him to walk freely and to see where the group is heading. He would've heard Shachi's exasperated sigh if it wasn't for the noise, and would've seen his mocking expression and him shaking his head if he looked in Shachi's direction. Law feels, however, Shachi keeping a close distance, as if anticipating Law will pathetically trip on his own feet and fall right there on the asphalt if unguarded. He shakes the angry thoughts out of his mind when he remembers that's exactly what he does when Shachi's drunk. Law never leaves him on his own for a second because Shachi sure does pathetically trip on his own feet.

"Where are we even going?" Law asks, mostly to himself but since Shachi so close to him he hears it perfectly.

"Blueno's Bar probably," Shachi's says, although he seems certain of what he's saying. Law knows the place, has been there a couple of times already. For some reason, Penguin and Shachi like the place, even though the drinks cost the double than on the most of the other bars in the area. Sometimes, however, the owner, a big guy that looks like a bull but has lips like a fish, does a few discounts, once a person spends enough money in there. "It probably won't be as full as this cheap and shitty ones."

"You have to warn Luffy then, so he can meet us there," Law says, almost tripping on a loose stone from the sidewalk, but managing to regain his balance before Shachi has time to react and help.

"Law, he won't come," Shachy says, sounding annoyed. "I've warned him every single time we changed places and he hasn't responded or appeared yet," he then takes his phone out of his jacket's front pocket and checks the time. "It's almost half past two, Law, he isn't coming."

"But he-"

" _Yes_ , Law, he sent you a message during dinner asking if it was really okay for him to show up. I know. You've already repeated that a million times," Shachi says, rolling his eyes. Law feels his belly twitch with hunger then, it feels like they had dinner weeks ago, even though just a few hours went by. And Law ate a lot, so much he felt like he was about to explode. He even had to unbutton his pants so his stomach could stretch a bit more for dessert. He knows he ate like a starving man that didn't have enough food inside his fridge to feed himself for days but, in his defense, the food was just so delicious it was impossible to stop eating. Plus, he wasn't the only one, at least he kept his manners and ate slowly unlike the pink haired girl named Bonnie that sat right next to him.

Law had just finished eating when he received Luffy's text, to which he responded ' _obviously_ ' and even added the first bar they would go after leaving the restaurant.

"But I-"

" _Yes_ , Law, I also know you think you've already seen Luffy a bunch of times. You've also repeated that a million times."

"I did see him," Law says between his teeth, frowning.

"Then why didn't he appear or even turn around when you called so desperately his name, huh? I mean, for real, Law, it's like you didn't see the guy yesterday." Shachi says, using a lot of hand movements. "You think you saw him, but you _didn't_ , when you're drunk all people with brown hair and brown eyes look the same."

"You don't fucking look like him," Law mutters to himself. He's sure Shachi heard it through, but any comment he could've said gets lost once they enter Blueno's Bar. There are a few people inside the place, some dancing not at all at the rhythm of the music that's playing, others just sat on roundtables near the corner, drinking. The place's darker than usual, just the counter is well illuminated, like a luminous sign telling the subconscious where to spend money.

The group sits on one of the big tables, occupying all of the chairs available and stealing some from nearby tables. Penguin comes with a round metal tray full of tequila shots for everyone, saying it was Blueno's birthday gift for him. They all sing happy birthday to Penguin, so loudly the music playing gets muffled momentarily by it. A few people join in, clapping or whistling, and then return to their own businesses. Law forgets he decided not to drink more and drinks his one an only shot and then two gin and tonic, with a slice of lemon he ends up giving to someone else to put on their own drink.

He loses track of time and when that pink haired chick Law forgot the name of convinces him to go dancing, his legs are even harder to control than before. Law doesn't know how to dance, at all. Penguin and Shachi have mocked him so much about it that he wouldn't even be surprised if, when he looked at their direction, they had their phones out just recording the moment. But Law doesn't look in their direction, and his lack of dance skills along with his lack of motion coordination at the moment are nothing comparing to the mess of limbs and moves and exorcism the girl (Polly?) is doing right in front of him. He actually feels good to have accepted her challenge, his dance moves could actually be considered art when next to hers. She laughs loudly and shoves everyone around her but seems so happy Law ends up laughing too.

The dance zone has more people now than when they arrived, but Law finds he doesn't really mind. He still has enough space to move properly so it's okay. The place isn't like a disco, but the music is loud and frenetic enough and the fact the lights aren't psychedelic and blinding is a bonus.

And then he sees Luffy and he's sure it's not him thinking he sees him, he's actually there, entering the place without his red cardigan, wearing instead a vest that appears to be blue, but with his straw hat on his head. And there's a tall guy beside him, talking to him, that Law just sees when he's already close to them, not noticing he left Polly dancing all by herself. He's wearing black and his eyebrows have a weird natural raise and Law doesn't like his appearance one slight bit.

Luffy notices him approaching with his big brown eyes all shiny. "Hey there!" He says, loud so he can be heard over the music, and then smiles widely when Law finally gets closer.

"I was starting to think you wouldn't come," Law says and his voice sounds weird to his own ears with the amount of alcohol he ingested. He receives an apologetic smile in return and then adds," they're over there," turning and pointing to the table full of purses and jackets and with only Penguin and Shachi guarding it.

Law sees them looking and then his attention is drawn to the guy beside Luffy. He doesn't look so tall up close, not to his own height. "So I guess you're safely delivered," he says, as if Luffy is some kind of object he can just drop off and then leave. He gives Law a weird ass look before heading to the counter, Luffy shouting an 'see ya' at his back. Law would really like to know what's with the fucking glares he keeps receiving.

"So, want tequila a little time together or what?" Luffy says next to him, grinning so much it makes Law laugh a bit, even though he only realized what Luffy actually said when it was already too late to comment on it.

He notices Luffy's drunk when he trips on the only step of the place, one that marks the end of the entryway, and almost takes Law to the floor with him when he grabs his arm. There's a smell of smoke coming from him, smelling just like Shachi and Penguin do when they smoke what they shouldn't. Law wonders if it really was Luffy whom he kept seeing instead of just some random person with brown eyes and hair like Shachi said. He hears Luffy laughing as he tries to regain his balance and realizes why the other guy said 'safely delivered'.

"Oh my God you actually came!" Shachi yells when they get near the table.

Luffy smiles at Shachi and then looks at Penguin's direction, noticing the guy is wearing two caps on top of each other. He loved the present, but he wasn't ready to let go of his old one just like that, so the solution he found for the night was to wear both of them at the same time. "Happy birthday!"

"Thank you! I'm glad you made it!" Penguin says, approaching Luffy and giving him one of his bear hugs. Luffy giggles and is then dragged to the dance floor, giving Law one last look, pleading for help from over his shoulder. He just shrugs in response, sitting on the nearest chair. He guesses it's his turn to watch over the table and all the belongings on top of it. His legs are tired from standing up for so long, and his feet feel like they're burning so much that, when his ass touches the chair, a wave of relief passes through him and he feels like, if he lays his head on the table, he will fall asleep right there. His head's heavy and he can't see very well. Everything's a blur, even when he brings his hand closer to his face and tries to focus on it.

Jean comes and scares him, touching his shoulder as he walks behind him to seat in a chair too. He doesn't say anything, and neither does Law, they just look ahead, to the dance zone even though Law can't really distinguish anyone, just a yellow blur that gets more defined with each step Law takes in its direction. He forgets about his tiredness, about his sore legs and the pain on his feet and just walks forward. He squishes himself between Shachi and Penguin and goes stand in front of Luffy that smiles when he sees him, huge white teeth shining over the light of the place. His hair's a mess and his face has more color than what Law has seen in it for the last few weeks, his cheeks all flushed. Luffy looks at him through his lashes, Law standing taller than him, and suddenly Law feels the itch between his lungs again, stronger than before, making him catch a breath.

"What?" Luffy asks, although Law didn't hear him, just watched as his lips moved and formed the word. He smiles and shakes his head, devaluing the situation. Law sees Luffy arching an eyebrow but then he feels someone rubbing against him and, when he looks up, he's not even surprised for having Shachi dancing weirdly against him, back with back, Penguin trying to mimic him but not having anyone to rub against without it being inappropriate.

Law doesn't know how long he stayed there, forming some kind of circle on the dance floor with his friends and Luffy. He didn't like the music that was playing, he didn't even know what music it was, and yet he danced, moving his body at the rhythm of the music, with other people rubbing themselves on him more often than not. He saw Polly, or whatever her name was, almost eating a guy's face, their bodies so glued together that it was weird to think Law could've been the guy if he didn't escape in time. At some point, Kid approaches them and starts to move in a very demonic way, but ends up spending more time walking towards the counter and coming back with a new drink on his hand than dancing. Law ends up drinking as much as him, giving Kid money every time they both finish their drinks. Kid gives him a glare every time, but still brings two drinks with him.

And then it was all over, too fast, Penguin getting him out of Blueno's bar and a sudden chilly breeze hitting his sweated face, making him shiver. He didn't know what time it was, and he couldn't check his phone because it had died without battery right in the begging of the night, like the useless thing it is, but the part of the sky he could see was still dark, all the street lamps still on.

Law's putting on his jacket when Shachi gets out, bringing Luffy attached to him, and Jean, Killer, and Kid following right behind. As the group gathers in the middle of the now semi-deserted street, with a slightly better illumination quality, Law notices how bad everyone looks like. Everyone's face is sweaty and flustered, their hair a mess, pointing in every direction, the clothes messy and poorly arranged, Kid's dark makeup all blurred around his eyes, making him look even eviler; Jean looking so grumpy and restless that Law's sure he's more asleep than awake, his eyes small and puffy. He's not sure if he looks much better than them.

"Alright, guys!" Penguin says, clapping a few times to get everyone's attention, or better, everyone's glare. "We're heading to my place so we need to take the bus as you already probably know-"

"Just get to the point already," Kid says beside him, his voice rough and angry.

"Alright, okay, hum," Penguin continues, letting out a short nervous laugh, scratching the back of his neck. "If we don't get to the bus stop in ten minutes we'll have to wait an hour for the next bus."

Kid curses Penguin's family, Jean growls and Shachi gasps, taking out his phone and his eyes grow big when he checks the time. He and Penguin share a small conversation that started with "why didn't you check the time, you fucker?!", followed by a few apologies, while the group starts to, clumsy, but as fast as they can manage, walk down the street. Law feels his legs wobbly and heavy, his feet numb, but he tries his best to walk as normally as he would've if he was sober, which proves to be quite hard when the damn pavement isn't even properly leveled.

They obviously arrive late to the bus stop, the bus being already long gone by the time they see the place from afar. Jean and Killer seat in the cold metal seats, Jean immediately leaning against the glass wall behind him and closing his eyes, Killer just staring into space. Kid grabs his pack of cigars and takes one out, walking alone to a small green park on the other side of the road, saying he's going to take a piss. Penguin and Shachi, as the only mostly sober ones of the group, start looking at the bus' schedules fixed on one of the sides of the bus stop, along with the schedules of the others public transportation, analyzing and pointing and debating about things Law doesn't care.

He sees Luffy looking at the seat of the bus stop, one side occupied by a mad looking Killer and the other by a snoring and twisted Jean, just the middle part being free, but it's such a small space even a tiny person like Luffy would feel squished. He ends up sitting in front of the bus stop, on the edge of the sidewalk with his feet touching the road where the bus will stop. Law sits beside him, almost falling backwards when he tries to do so. He feels nauseous and his head's spinning, so he keeps looking ahead, to the small park, spotting Kid's redhead quite easily between all the greenness. He feels his body shivering with the cold breeze and tries to push away the thought they have to wait an hour outdoors. The warm feeling of the alcohol inside his organism's being the only thing that's keeping him warm. He feels the muscles of his legs burning, screaming in agony, and he has to stretch them farther into the road to alleviate the pain.

He starts to look around when he stops feeling like he's going to throw up if he moves, trying to keep his mind occupied with something else other than his misery. Aside from the park in front of him, there's also a street kiosk, a small green metal house with the doors closed but a lot of newspapers and magazines showing through the windows. Behind the bus stop, there's a small convenience store on the ground floor of a five-story building. There's a laundromat right next to it, with big windows showing a long line of aligned washing machines and dryers that reminds Law he didn't take care of the laundry like he intended; and then a coffee and a flower shop, all closed. He notices Penguin and Shachi still debating and tries to concentrate on their conversation, but he can't hear clearly most of the things they say and gives up right away.

Law hears footsteps and then Kid's legs are in front of him. He looks up in time to see him taking off his large dark coat, then putting it on top of Luffy's shoulders more carefully than what Law has ever thought Kid could do. Luffy turns around then too, looking up with a surprised expression.

"Oh, no, I'm fine," he says, his hands coming up to the extremely flared collar. "I don't need-"

Kid huffs in response. "Yeah, sure you don't, man. _I'm_ the one who doesn't need it because I'm wearing actual clothes, unlike you. Just shut up and take the damn coat," he says as he sits in the free space in the bus stops' seat, almost knocking Jean out of it but without stopping his loud snores. He crosses his arms in front of his chest, looking at Luffy as if convincing him that he will be just fine without his coat.

Law looks in Luffy's direction and feels stupid for just now remembering the guy's wearing shorts and a vest that don't protect him from the chilly breeze at all. Law should've given him his own jacket, even though he would've missed its warmth, unlike Kid. Instead of looking around he should've looked at Luffy and noticed he was pale as a white wall and trembling like green reeds, but no.

He feels his stomach twitching inside his belly when Luffy stands up and mutters a 'thanks', then sticks his arms inside the coat and closes it, sitting right after. The coat is so big for him it looks like he's wearing a blanket, a big blur from Law's point of view. Luffy's hands are lost inside the sleeves and most of his legs are covered too. He adjusts his straw hat on top of his head and brings the collar closer to his face, the color returning to his cheeks.

Law feels like he should apologize, but the right words never leave his mouth.

"Yes, Law?" Luffy asks and Law realizes he was probably staring. He looks away right after, but not before noticing one of Luffy brows arching, his eyes watery with the breeze and the alcohol. He sounds so drunk that Law tries to remember if Kid only carried two drinks, or three, one belonging to Luffy. He leans, like he's falling and Law's first reaction is to catch him, but he takes too long and Luffy reestablishes his balance on his own. "Why are you staring from my head tomatoes?" He then asks, giggling.

Law looks at him again, trying to figure out if he's just imagining things or if Luffy really said what Law thinks he said. He realizes he did when he sees Luffy's sly smile and feels proud of himself for catching it just in time.

"Don't you know any other puns aside from food ones?" Law hears himself asking without really wanting too.

"Of course I do!" Luffy says, his smile growing larger. It's so weird to see Luffy so smiley and humorous, so much Law's afraid he's just imagining everything. Law got used to seeing him staring into space or at the door of Bell-mere's with a blank expression, as if pondering on just pick up his stuff and leave the place. It's been a long time since Law has seen him smile so fully and, even though he knows it is not entirely real and only exists due to the amount of alcohol inside of both of their organisms, he's still happy for seeing it back on Luffy's face.

Luffy looks like he's about to prove himself when Penguin and Shachi approach the group and start explaining their new plan. Instead of waiting the remaining forty-five minutes for a bus that would take an hour to get them to a bus stop near Penguin's place, only a fifteen minutes walk away, they will catch another that will arrive in five minutes and take them to the nearest subway station where they can catch the first subway of the day, at half past five in the morning. There's a station twenty minutes away from Penguin's place and, according to him, the walk is easy and fast to do, even though Law's not so sure of it, but he keeps his mouth shut. The change of planes will, in the best case scenario, make them arrive fifteen minutes or so earlier than what they would arrive with plan number one, but Law doesn't complain, and neither do the others, too relieved for the fact they won't die of boredom waiting for a bus to realize the change of plans doesn't really compensate.

They all prepare their bus tap cards and wait impatiently for the bus to arrive. A few people appear to catch it too. Some are in the same state as Law and his group, others are well dressed and ready to go to work but with the same tired face as everyone else. Law and Luffy have to stand up at some point to prevent being trampled as everyone started to form an agglomeration on where the bus' doors will presumably be. When the bus finally arrives, there are enough people to fill it gathered in the same place. He looks around when people start pushing to get inside and have a seat. He notices Killer, Kid and Jean in the middle of the people, Shachi and Penguin on the side, by the bus. He keeps Luffy close and lets him enter first on the bus, helping him with the step and almost tripping over his own feet when it's his turn. By the time both of them used their tap cards, there aren't any free seats left so Law follows Luffy to the middle of the bus, him leaning simultaneously to the back of one of the seats and the window. Law stands beside him, grabbing a cold metal pole that goes all the way from the floor to the ceiling of the bus. He sees the rest of the group entering, opting for stand on the front, right next to the driver's cab, there not being enough space for them to enter more either way.

Law was not ready when the bus pulled off and he would've crushed Luffy in his corner if he didn't grab the pole with all the force of his right hand. He was not used to be inside public transportation, only the subway, and much less under the effect of alcohol.

The trip is bumpy due to the bad conditions of the road and the poor and aggressive driving skills of the driver. People enter and leave the bus at every stop, but the amount inside the bus maintains relatively the same. Law realizes he's in a bad place when he starts feeling hands touching his own, aiming for the pole but still touching his hand, and when he starts getting shoved from all sides from people that want to get out and need to get to the door before the bus stops. On the first opportunity, when the bus stays stopped for longer due to the number of people that want to leave, he squishes between the people that managed to put themselves between him and Luffy and goes stand beside him once more, now leaning against the window, their arms touching. The secret to maintaining the balance is to open the legs until they're shoulder-width apart and do a ridiculous amount of force with them against the floor. Now that he has a support for his back, he doesn't need to lean singly forward when the bus pulls off or slightly back when it slows down. He just hopes there isn't a big curve on the way.

It doesn't take long for the air inside the bus to become heavy and muffled. Law starts to feel sweaty again and he would've taken off his jacket if there was enough room for him to do so. He looks at Luffy and he looks worse, flushed and sweaty inside that big ass coat. He notices Law looking and smiles, that sly smile of his.

"Hey, Law?" He asks when Law looks away, making him turn his face to him once more. He leans in to listen Luffy better over the murmur of people and it's the worse decision he could've made. "You look hot, let me blow you," Luffy says, his voice low and flirty, so close to Law's ear his breath sends a tingle of goosebumps down his arms and spine.

Law immediately backs off, he was caught so out of guard his mind takes a while to organize his thoughts and realize that was just Luffy showing off he knows more puns than food-related ones. He feels his face hotter than before and when Luffy starts laughing at him he receives a punch in the shoulder, given it with too much strength but the coat absorbs most of it anyway. Law runs his hand through his face and fights the urge to roll his eyes.

"See? I know a lot of puns," Luffy says, looking proud of himself.

"Just one doesn't prove anything," Law says, regretting and facepalming mentally right after. _What have you done, you absolute idiot_ , he thinks when he sees Luffy's determined expression.

"Alright then," he says, and looks like he's about to say another one but is interrupted when Penguin starts shoving everyone out of his way, the others behind him, and starts walking in their direction. "This is our stop," he says, then facing the bus door. When the bus stops, he and Luffy move away from each other and head to the door, squishing between the people. He feels someone grab his jacket and, when he looks back he sees Luffy grabbing him, like a child afraid of getting lost in the crowd.

"Alright, to the subway station," Penguin says, leading the group along with Shachi, checking occasionally if everyone's still following them. The station is at the very end of a very long street that they take ten minutes just to walk through. There are not many people around, aside from them and a few people opening their coffee shops and bakeries, so they have most of the sidewalk to walk freely. Killer and Kid walk in front of Law, while Jean goes on his own, away from the rest of the group, looking like a fast-paced sleepwalker. Luffy's walking beside him, stumbling a few times and looking peacefully to the sky as the first sunlight starts to illuminate it, the darkness being replaced with a dark tone of purple and blue. He's still wearing Kid's coat, now unbuttoned, his hands still hidden inside the sleeves, the arms dangling on both side of his body.

"You're gonna need a library card if you want to continue checking me out like that," Luffy says, looking smug.

"I wasn't checking you out," Law says, because he truly wasn't. He was just looking.

Luffy half-closes his eyes, showing Law he doesn't believe him. "Yeah, sure," he says, then shrugs. "Well, I check you out quite often, and let me tell ya, if I was a fine art appraiser, your ass would be priceless."

Law hears Kid bursting up with laughter, being so loud the sound echoes through the empty and mostly quiet street. Law starts laughing when he sees a slightly embarrassed expression on Luffy's face, one that says implicitly no one except Law was supposed to have heard what he said, but then he laughs too.

"I'm using that one next time I see a good pair of asscheeks," Kid says and then turns his back to them again like nothing happened.

Luffy remains shut for the rest of the walk, either for being embarrassed or because he's thinking about a next one.

The entrance of the subway station is a big dark thing full of poorly made graffitis and covered with old and mostly ripped posters, a roundly shaped structure with the shutters used to close it from two until five in the morning only half way opened. From afar, it looks like a big and scary mouth, the flights of escalators and normal stairs being the way down the throat. Law notices all the drawings made with tiles on the curved walls, big and so abstract Law doesn't understand shit. The escalator keeps taking them down and down for so long Law wonders if they're heading to hell.

They stay a long amount of time surrounding the card's vending machine because Shachi's a dumb fuck that doesn't know how acquiring subway cards works. Law hears the subways' loud noise, a muffled but strident sound that echoes through the tunnels. The shops underground are all still closed, security shutters covering each door and window, and people seem to pass through without even noticing them. On the ticket gate, Kid faces some problem with his card, the doors not opening when he taps it on the scan. He swears a lot, loudly and aggressively, kicking the machine before passing through another one behind Jean, the doors closing right after. They lose another subway and have to wait for ten minutes for the next one, a woman on the speakers warning everyone about the delay.

The platform dock is a long thing with a yellow line marking the dangerous zone and seats positioned along the wall, with four entrances where people enter and leave. On the other side of the railway, the view is basically the same, just with fewer people and different paintings on the walls. They all sit in a row of seats, resting their tired legs, aside from Penguin that decides to stay on his feet, standing in front of them. Law sits between Luffy and Shachi, being in the middle of their conversation and having to lean back for them to be able to see each other while talking. Law finds he doesn't understand what they're saying verry well, like he's inside a bathtub, his head underwater, and they're talking next to it, their voices sounding muffled. He starts feeling sleepy, his head suddenly so heavy it's hard just to keep his neck straight. He laughs when he hears the others laughing, talking loudly beside him, but the words still sounding weird.

He feels himself leaning forward and he knows he's about to pathetically fall from the seat but doesn't have enough energy or strength to sit properly again. It's like he's feeling the gravity pulling him down, and the idea is so appealing to his body that his mind can't do anything to control it. Fortunately, Shachi grabs him and pushes him against the back of the seat, the metal cold against his back.

"Easy there, buddy," Law hears him saying next to his face, the smell of alcohol and Shachi's cologne filling his nostrils in a sickening mix. He tries to push the guy away but he doesn't have enough strength to raise his arm properly.

"You okay?" Luffy asks on his left side and, when Law looks at him, he can only distinguish the contour of his straw hat and Kid's coat. "Feel like throwing up or something?"

"No," Law says, shaking his hand simultaneously. He tries to explain that his stomach feels just fine, but that he feels the itch inside his ribcage again, putting his palm on his chest to show where it is.

"On your heart?" He hears Shachi asking, his voice sounding skeptical but at the same time cautious, as if Law could be describing the beginning of a heart attack.

"No, you _idiot_! Between my lungs, _here_ " Law says, turning to him and slapping his own chest, anger growing inside of him for not being able to express himself properly.

"But, does it hurt?" Penguin asks, suddenly entering the conversation, standing in front of him, slightly bent over, as if examining Law's chest even though his problem is not visible

"No," Law says, feeling frustrated, "it's just here and itches and doesn't go away."

"Is there something we can do?"

Law thinks for a minute, he doesn't remember noticing the itch going away, but he doesn't remember it always being there either so he guesses the only thing for him to do is to forget about it, and with that, he doesn't need help. "Yes," he ends up saying, then looks in Luffy's direction, finally focusing on his eyes. He doesn't know why Shachi says everyone with brown eyes and hair look the same when someone's drunk, Luffy's eyes are so unique and _beautiful_ even a drunk person can distinguish them from the others."Tell me a pun, I miss them."

He sees Luffy confused expression and for a second he fears he didn't express himself well enough, but then he asks: "What do you call a fake noodle?" He waits for a response and Law hears Shachi calling them ridiculous and Kid huffing but he doesn't mind because, when Luffy answers with "an impasta", Law starts laughing loudly, even though it wasn't even supposed to be funny, and then Luffy joins him and Law knows they probably look retarded.

"Another one," Law says and Luffy starts saying a bunch in a row, both of them laughing in between. He hears the subway arriving before he sees it, the wheels sizzling strident and loudly, and that gives him time to stand and approach the yellow line, Luffy and Shachi always close. There are a few people inside already, and the remaining seats are only enough for a small portion of the people that enter. Shachi spots two empty seats, next to each other, and rushes to sit on the one on the corridor's side, occupying the other with his hand and not letting anyone sit there. The subway starts moving while Law's heading towards him and if Luffy didn't grab his arm he would've fallen backwards.

He feels his head spinning and the noise of the wheels over the railway uis so loud and strident his brain doesn't stop screaming ' _we're gonna derail! We're gonna derail!_ " and he feels a sudden wave of unjustified panic rushing through him. At some point, Luffy grabs his hand, pulling him gently, and Law realizes he was grabbing the back of a taken seat for dear life, his nails digging into the fabric, the old woman sat there looking at him reproachfully and leaning his small body as far from him as she could.

And then he's sitting, his numb legs stretched as much as he can in the reduced space available, his head heavy. When he turns his head to his side, Shachi's nowhere to be seen, but Luffy's there, sat next to him, looking worried and Law wonders if that's all because of his pathetic attitudes. He tries to sit upright, but it's hard when his limbs don't cooperate. He feels ridiculous and tired, so tired he wouldn't mind falling asleep there, in fact, the thought is more than tempting. The noise stops affecting him and he soon forgets it's even there, the metal and hard seats seem more comfortable to his tired body than what they should be, and Luffy's there by his side. Law feels his arm touching his own even though there's still the thick layer of fabric from Kid's coat between them, and his smell fills his nostrils, overlapping the others, and his presence is just so sweet and so addicting he doesn't notice his head tilting to the side until he feels the coat's collar against his cheek. He tries to raise his head but he only manages to find enough strength to bury his nose deeper into the collar of the coat, finding Luffy's neck and inhaling profoundly.

"You smell good," Law mutters next to Luffy's ear and feels him shiver and tense under his face. Law hears his breath uneven and knows he's making him uncomfortable but he can't make himself move away, and neither does Luffy try to push him away. He doesn't remember closing his eyes, but he quickly realizes it's hard to keep them open when he tries to. "How far are we?"

Luffy moves under him, making Law's position more comfortable. "Four stops away," he says, his voice low, his hot breath touching lightly Law's face. He tries to imagine how they look like, in what weird position he has forced Luffy into, how weird he looks himself, but it only makes his head hurt.

"How do you know?" Law asks after a while. He feels the subway stopping and hears the sound of people leaving and entering quickly, the sounds of some sitting closer than others. _Three_ , he thinks.

"Shachi told me where to get out," Luffy says, leaning his head against Law's.

Law forces his eyes open, turning his head a bit so he can look ahead. There are two men sitting on the seats in front of them, one reading a book, the other looking through the window even though the view is just the pitch black of the tunnel. He doesn't see Shachi, or any other person of the group, just sees blurry figures in the distance. "Where's he?" He asks, giving up and closing his eyes once more.

He feels Luffy stretching his neck, turning his head back, and then returning to the same position. "Standing with the others near the pole in the middle."

 _We're alone then_ , he thinks, but he quickly realizes he has said it out loud when Luffy responds with a simple and low "yes", both of them ignoring the fact there are two guys just in front of them, and probably a bunch of more people on their side.

Law feels and hears the subways stopping again. He waits until the noise of people leaving and entering decreases and then asks Luffy for more puns, making him giggle softly, his shoulders shaking. Law waits for a long time and then feels Luffy's face closer than before. He tries to open his eyes, at least slightly, and then sees Luffy's lips close, moving slowly and letting out a low mumble that would be impossible for Law to hear if they weren't so close.

"I'm glad you're not my pinky toe," he says, smiling in the end, so graceful and brightly Law gets mesmerized for a while, taking his time to ask why. "Because I would bang you against all my furniture."

Law starts laughing loudly, finding it way too funny, and Luffy joins in after Law's breaths against his neck start to tickle him. He feels the subway stopping again, and Law doesn't need Luffy to tell him to straighten up, that their stop is the next one. His back hurts when he sits upright and he feels dizzy and nauseous when he has to get up, the subway sizzling loudly. He stumbles his way towards the door and, when his feet touch the firm ground and he hears the subway start moving again behind him, his body starts leaning to the right, his mind thinking he's still moving. It takes him a while to get used to normal gravity again and Kid mocks him all the way up the escalators, and all the way out of the station even though Kid's walking conditions aren't much better.

He annoys Law so much the first thing he does when the fresh air hits his face is to look for his pack of cigars. He looks up when he realizes he has lost it, or finished it, or that someone stole it, questioning the Lord's above why they had to give him such luck. The sky is now turning blue, a pale tone with a few white and fluffy spots here and there. He asks his friends for a cigarette, desperate for nicotine inside his sistem, but no one gives him one, that's just how good his friends are. It seems so improbable but, aside from Killer that explains he just has one that he's saving for himself, they just respond they don't even have a packet, as if they all didn't smoke, except Luffy, although he's not so sure anymore.

Law feels frustrated and annoyed and he spends a good portion of the walk just kicking a small rock that dared to cross his way, taking it as far as possible before it gets lost underneath a car parked illegally on the sidewalk.

"You know," Luffy says, appearing on his side, his straw hat firmly positioned on top of his head, making him have to look sharply up to see Law's face. "You don't really need a cigar."

"Why not?" Law asks, after a while of Luffy not responding, just looking ahead like he hasn't said anything.

"Cause you're already smoking hot," he says and the grins, but the grin is different from the others, it doesn't look happy, it just looks forced, fake. His eyes aren't shiny, even though the slightest of lights illuminates and makes them appear two spotlights. The day's brightening, the first sunbeams hitting the tall buildings of the area, and yet his eyes look dull. And maybe all of Luffy's grins, and laughs and smiles through the night where faked and he didn't even notice until now, and the thought pisses him off so much he doesn't even react to what Luffy said, just keeps walking, never wishing more that Penguin's place wasn't so far away from everything, that all the blankets and pillows and sleeping bags forming and improvising a giant bed on the floor was just around the corner.

Luffy keeps his mouth shut after that, putting some space between him and Law but seeming overall unaffected.

Climb five floors of stairs after such a tiring night must've been the hardest thing Law has done in years. He heard his legs and brain screaming when Penguin told them the elevator was being repaired and, when he put his foot right on the first step it was almost like torture. He tried not to look up to see how much stairs there was still to climb, and tried not to look down, otherwise, his mind would've told him it was preferably to just throw himself down.

He feels like shit. Tired and angry with himself. He wished he was in his apartment, in his bedroom, on his bed, not climbing starts to Penguin's, to sleep on the living room over some blankets and sheets that smell like mold because he just brings them out of the closet once a year.

"Alright, who's hungry?" Penguin asks as soon as everyone's inside, closing the door behind them, then heading to the kitchen.

Law just remains standing in the corridor, watching everyone following Penguin, aside from Jean that heads directly to the living room, laying down on the mattress that's right beside Penguin's long couch, facing it. He doesn't even bother about taking his shoes off, or covering himself with a sheet or a blanket, just crosses his arms in front of his chest and starts snoring. Law's stomach rumbles, but the thought of food still sounds unappealing, because he knows he will throw up if any food dares to touch it. He decides to head to the bathroom first, a small thing just at the end of a really long hallway that crosses all the apartment, passing right through the collection of pictures Penguin has hanging on the walls without paying much attention, being already too familiar with them. He takes a long piss and feels his eyes so heavy he has to close them while doing so.

He stumbles his way back to the living room where only Jean's laying, snoring loudly, still in the same position. He takes off his shoes, putting them in a corner where they won't bother anyone, and then chooses the spot on the edge of the big improvised bed, laying over a thin mattress Penguin once brought to do exercise at home, bringing a thick blanket over his body. The pillow is a piece of shit, just fabric with a handful of filling that's barely noticeable, but it feels so good to finally have something to rest his heavy head on that he doesn't mind. He decides to take off his hat, putting it on the floor next to the matress, then turns to his side and tries to find a comfortable position. He hears Jean snoring and people talking from the kitchen, a small room right next to the living room, along with the sound of plastic bags being opened. His belly rumbles again, but he feels so cozy and comfortable he doesn't dare to move.

Then the voices get louder, whispered and hissed. Law hears them taking off their shoes, but doesn't think they had the decency of putting them out of the way like he did, just throw them somewhere instead. He feels them stumbling their way into the pile of blankets and pillows, finding a spot to sleep on. He forces one eye open, just in time to see Luffy entering a sleeping bag right next to him, without his straw hat on top of his head and with Kid's coat gone. And then Penguin closes the blinds and everything's pitch black. He waits for his vision to adjust to the darkness, but it doesn't.

Luffy's smell fills the air, along with the smell of alcohol, sweat, and stinky feet. He moves closer to Luffy, moving his body like a worm. He ends up falling asleep with his nose buried in Luffy's soft hair, breathing its smell and fighting the urge of running his fingers through it.

* * *

 **Feel free to leave a PM**

 ** _Remember that knowledge is a powerful thing, and one can never have too much of it. There's always something to learn about, to acknowledge, to apprehend and assimilate. That's what makes one interesting to talk too._**


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